[3.6] Milky's Scorching Ray Totems (updating process)

@panther

the degen is VERY low with capped totem resists that it wont make the fight more hectic (the lifetime is higher than the duration). On a chieftain we already needed to replace totems rather often on mobile enemys.

yes scorching ray was usable before, but it was hard to justify adding it.

With VLT turned into garbage, which was a must have gem, we finally have room for it.

Personally i respecc AB with soulmantle and just use Oos, rft, sb and scorching ray in bossfights. Enduring cry as my healthflask. Its not really more to do.

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i am currently uploading my act 3 playthrough, after that act 4 where i make the switch at the end of the video.

The changes seemed to be present at the creation of the video (the degen was lower and the dmg felt lower as well). Its still pretty good after lvl 40 and i will play it in 3.0.

ofc i compared my 2.6 character with those changes (same gear, jewels...)

Even for HC i would recommend a soulmantle in 3.0, but without kikazarus + self-flagellation... instead 2 curse removal flasks

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the_Arkain wrote:

Hallo,

if i understand your math right the new way to play in endgame is:

Old way (allways):

2x rf totem (+1 with shield) + 1x searing bond

New way:

Mapping:

2x rf totem (+1 with shield) + 1x searing bond

Boss:

1x rf totem (+1 with shield) +1 scorching ray + 1 searing bond

?

basically yes, except that i rarely used searing bond while mapping.

Thank you for saving the build!

Also, is worth using for this build? Seems very easy to farm.

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Fredd32 wrote:

Thank you for saving the build!

Also, is

worth using for this build? Seems very easy to farm.

i wouldn´t want another item without life just for a bit of firedmg

Another issue brought up by using scorching ray is that it's interfering with decoy totem which is an honestly busted skill. It sortof takes away the mobility of bosses you were talking about and makes them deal 10% less damage to us. And sure you can respec AB with a soul mantle but what about hardcore? It just seems like we have less options now.

In hardcore I really would prefer to be using some sockets for auras, reserving mana and having decoy totem and enduring cry available (not necessarily with increased duration). I hope I can fit everything. Maybe can only afford 2L scorching ray and no searing bond. I guess we'll see.

Anyways, thanks for providing some fresh ideas on how to make up for this big hit they've decided to give to a niche build.

Thanks a million Milky for the update :)

One thing still puzzles me - how do you now proc EE without VLT? With AB, some obvious ways (OoS and +cold/ligthing dmg to attacks) would not work... And the bonus from EE is still pretty juicy.

Edited: Oops, overlooked the ice trap gem in your main hand. Silly me...

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trouba wrote:

Thanks a million Milky for the update :)

One thing still puzzles me - how do you now proc EE without VLT? With AB, some obvious ways (OoS and +cold/ligthing dmg to attacks) would not work... And the bonus from EE is still pretty juicy.

any other trap, like lightning or ice trap

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LaserPanther wrote:

Another issue brought up by using scorching ray is that it's interfering with decoy totem which is an honestly busted skill. It sortof takes away the mobility of bosses you were talking about and makes them deal 10% less damage to us. And sure you can respec AB with a soul mantle but what about hardcore? It just seems like we have less options now.

In hardcore I really would prefer to be using some sockets for auras, reserving mana and having decoy totem and enduring cry available (not necessarily with increased duration). I hope I can fit everything. Maybe can only afford 2L scorching ray and no searing bond. I guess we'll see.

Anyways, thanks for providing some fresh ideas on how to make up for this big hit they've decided to give to a niche build.

sure a 2l SR works out as well, its more about the debuff.

Many bosses dont care that much about decoy, its mainly uber izaro or daresso.

the thing is, with a berserk, you often taunt as well. But it decoy is really needed its not a big deal to sac some dps.
Guardians and shaper are taunt resistant/immune anyway.

Even on hardcore i would use soulmantle. Its just too good, sacrificing one item slot is not a huge deal.

i wouldnt use kikazaru + self-flagellation and remove curses with 1-2 flasks instead

- reserved -

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Milkyslice wrote:

sure a 2l SR works out as well, its more about the debuff.

Many bosses dont care that much about decoy, its mainly uber izaro or daresso.

the thing is, with a berserk, you often taunt as well. But it decoy is really needed its not a big deal to sac some dps.
Guardians and shaper are taunt resistant/immune anyway.

Even on hardcore i would use soulmantle. Its just too good, sacrificing one item slot is not a huge deal.

i wouldnt use kikazaru + self-flagellation and remove curses with 1-2 flasks instead

That's kindof my point. Now that you're berserker you have to taunt for charges and it's lowering the effectiveness of the OP decoy totem. Decoy totem is still doing a LOT of work for guardians. Even if they intermittently run at you, you're still taking less damage and buying yourself time with the taunt.

As for curse removal flasks and soul mantle... can you really compare this to a chieftain with lightning coil, belly, brass dome, or even rare chest. It is more damage for sure but just risky... some nullifier mob or something, idk.

Bleh...