[3.8] LiftingNerdBro's Tri/Quad Frostbolt Totems Hierophant - Strong League Starter!
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Hey guys, Just a quick question. is it possible to avoid the staff defence nodes and use those points for more ele damage? or would this be detrimental to the build? thanks all <3
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This is a nice build guide!
I'm using this in Harbinger for a general totem ele build till i can get my hands on the Jewels(not easy in a new league) since it works for that as well with a few minor changes. Still, i think the build is to dependant on the Jewels since it does't seem to shine well without them. but hey, experimentation is what this game is about and thats what i'm diong :) |
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One Jewel you get in act 5, the other i bought for 2c from poe.trade.
https://www.twitch.tv/der_rasierer
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So far liking it, making some adjustments because I am not on HC and thus do not need the huge mana pool, and from the looks of it, not going to use a staff so that frees op more nodes for more damage! yay. Level 56 so far, pushing into act 7.
I started with frostbolt, and even though the projectile is slow, it does fine. I found a Elemental proliferation support in the large chest on strand as well, been using that all the time now. Faster casting and arcane surge make the current 4L I am using now. Issues: My biggest issue was that poe.trade is a horrible tool, and finding that 2nd frozen trail. 10s of people just do not reply. Setting it to live search got me my 2nd gem, for only 3C. 2nd issue is that I am either having bad luck, or it is more difficult getting, gear. So far no suitable 5l yet, or even 4l with BBBR to switch to totem. However self cast is also wonderful, and does loads of dmg even though I have already specced the totem nodes. Running herald of cold and thunder for more dps, but it seems that vs bosses it still is a bit lacking. I guess that with 4 totems the dmg goes 4x so that should help as well. Stopped using clarity in the mid 30s as the regen is just good enough to non stop cast it. A nice thing vs many bosses is that the orbs travel 2 screens (2.5 I think?) so just spam the wave of cold death in the general direction and check once in a while how much hp is left. Last edited by Dofolo on Aug 7, 2017, 3:55:41 AM
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For any players who are newer to casting builds, make sure in the early game you're using a 3 link +1 wand until you can get a 4 link and the highest possible spell damage in the other hand. For those who don't know the +1 cold recipe it is blue wand + alteration + cold ring (recipe for cold ring: iron ring+ any blue gem). Also recommend self casting until you get ancestral bond and at least one frozen trail.
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Level 73 with this so far in Harbinger.
Frankly, this build is a terrible league starter (if you're not playing HC). While I was poorly-geared, better gear wouldn't make much difference--the totems are just slow until you get multiple projectiles/totems at the same time. Frostbolt totems just aren't viable until you get the unique jewels and Ancestral Bond. Even then, you'll have a hard time with Act bosses, as the totems get distracted in their targeting, or just miss evasive bosses. It needs about 5-6c worth of gear to do more than survive. I needed significant help from my guild just to get to Act 5; I was basically carried from Act 2 through 5, and again in Act 9 and 10 until I started finding decent four/five-links and currency to buy upgrades. While it's true that you don't need a lot of money to get to mapping, the build just doesn't function until you get 5c in your wallet. And the build isn't capable of getting that far on its own. If you've got some money in your standard stash, or a friend who started the league before you, the build is just fine. Trying to play this "starter" from zero was misery. The damage output is abysmal until you get Frozen Trails online. You'll get a free one in Act 5, but if you want any kind of damage before that it'll cost you at least 1c in trade. I'm relatively happy with the result at level 70, but levels 20-50 were excruciating. Survivability is... mixed. The huge life pool and 40% MoM mean you've got effective HP for days. The build does not do well in close quarters, however, getting stunlocked and mowed down quickly. Orb of Storms requires getting up-close and personal, but at that distance, you're liable to pop pretty quickly; Flame Dash is painfully slow as an escape (let alone if you're on cooldown trying to keep Arcane Surge up). Unless I stay back and kite (not using Flame Dash/Orb of Storms offensively), I'm dead right quick. If I do hold back and kite, though, I'm practically invincible. If you're not playing HC, the build order is painfully slow as well. Because of Controlled Destruction, all of the early crit-chance/Power Charge nodes are worthless until late in the build. Orb of Storms is useless for leveling and suicidal for mapping. Flame Dash takes way, way too long to get Arcane Surge online and leaves you vulnerable to stuns if you use it offensively. Do not pick up Bond until you have your second Frozen Trails. Maybe not even then. Last edited by AtlasJackson on Aug 7, 2017, 4:52:07 AM
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I facerolled the acts ( now act 8 ).
Just sell the Chromes for Chaos , its 27:1.Pick up items for Chrome Recipe and search the Vendor. Look for Staves like this. It costs 1 Chaos on poe.trade, then make a four link with Vorici. For me it was one of the easiest starter build i have ever played. https://www.twitch.tv/der_rasierer
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" Oh yea that's another thing with 3.0 Act 7, not seen Vorici yet. And the dead lady 1x so far .... so my hideout is pretty barren crafting recipe wise. The talamoana dude however ... he basically moved in. about a 1:2 chance per zone it feels. | |
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I'v skipped ancestral bond this far (52) - without the hierophant totem node, i would lose too much damage for now (and for that i need cruel + uberlab).
Instead i use totem + vortex with frostbite/blashemy aura. Can span vortex on sturdier mobs. |
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" I had no issues whatsoever with this as my starter build. You talk about 5c as if its 5ex.. it's really not difficult to get. A couple can drop, you should get a couple more from the chaos shards with the harbringer, trade in other forms of currency to chaos on the currency market, etc.. I don't know how much cheaper you expect a starter build to be to get started. I did the 10 acts solo and have started mapping and I'm still on a 4 link. I bought 2 or 3 things for 1c each, grabbed one frozen trail for 2c on day 1 (I know they're a bit more now, but still) and the other in act 5. Single target for bosses was slow, but the build has enough EHP and you can run around avoiding damage while re-casting totems that it's not a big deal.. just takes a bit longer to kill bosses. I also haven't bothered yet with orb of storms, flame dash or any of that yet. Just health pots with quicksilvers to heal and move out of the way of danger. I'll get to that once I improve my gear a bit more. For the stun lock, use the new god power thing if it's an issue. You can still get stunned once but it should help with stun lock. Again, personally I didn't pick that one and it hasn't been an issue. You need to let your totems 'scout' for you.. place one up ahead of you ahead of time instead of running into mobs, getting hit/stunned, then trying to put them down. I highly recommend this build as a league starter. I've had pretty much the opposite experience from you. But to each their own, I guess. |
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