The Shotgun Bitch - ele crit frenzy/split arrow CI bow-witch - 110k+ effective frenzy DPS
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1.0 update:
Yeah I've been pretty busy with uni lately so haven't properly respecced any characters yet(started a vaguely similar life-based version on dominion). The main change to this build would be to auras - running more than 2 would be impossible. I suspect Discipline and hatred would be best, though if survivability becomes an issue discipline and grace is an option too. Regarding the tree, I haven't looked into it extensively but I might suggest something a bit like this. For HC (or squishy SC) players: rejoice, for vaal pact is now within easy reach so just get rid of a few other nodes and grab that as well. I intend to get round to making a more substantial rewrite at some point, but for now those are my suggestions :) ------- Hi! I'm Bed. Just a quick note before I get raged too much, "110k+ effective dps" means using diamond flasks, crit weakness curse and triple shock stacking (all of which are utilised), so tooltip DPS is marginally lower ^_^ - about 26k for me atm. Disclaimer: I did not copy this build from anyone and everything here is entirely my own work. Any resemblance to other peoples' builds, characters, and thoughts is purely co-incidental, but they obviously have the right idea too ^_^ I made this character for Anarchy. While potentially I see it as HC-viable with a modified skill tree (see tree notes) and higher ES, I like glass cannon dps, deal with it :D Also, if anybody fancies small-group map runs just whisp me, I'm usually up for it (though I may not always have high maps to spare, varies a lot).
Basic Synopsis
I made this build kinda as a trial and error attempt to create the perfect map-clearer. And I think I got pretty damn close. I'm currently at the point where I can 1 shot an entire screen of mobs (including blues) with a single crit (even in parties), and move between them with 118% run speed (I generally kill stuff quickly enough to keep my quicksilver flask permanently up). With this build I can clear most maps in under 5 minutes (barring huge ones like maze Temple and ones with ridiculous mods :D), and some in as little as 3 minutes. The damage of the build is obtained from a combination of stacking crit and scaling off high base physical damage bows (ie, Lioneye's) using blackgleam, hatred aura, added fire gem, WED, and %ele damage gear. Frenzy charges are stacked from the skill tree, Kraityn's reward and Darkray Vectors unique item, giving a total of 8 charges. They are maintained using the Frenzy skill and through blood rage. As well as providing a base 40% increased attack speed, this scales incredibly with a quality frenzy gem - a 20/20 gem with 8 charges gives 96% increased physical damage and 144% increased attack speed. I currently have a tooltip DPS of 26.3k, though with diamond flasks and crit weakness curse this is easily increased to an effective dps of ~50k. Shock stacks just multiply this further. AOE damage is provided by split arrow. Just for reference, Chain is junk ;). A quality pierce gem and the piercing shots passive allow for a 100% pierce chance, essentially giving split arrow a GMP-freezing pulse-esque fan attack, but with massive range. Combined with crit, this lets you 1shot literally everything in front of you and for some way offscreen. And pierce has a really low mana multiplier, so chain sucks even more ;) My tooltip DPS for crit is currently 11.8k, scaled up to an effective ~30k with dia flasks/crit weakness, and then scaled further with shock ofc. Though DPS doesnt really matter since it 1hits everything that isn't a boss with a crit anyway. My chance to crit with SA, crit weakness and diamond flask is 55.8% - or 1.66 crits/second. More links are obviously good, but the build will work fine with just 4Ls. Bows are cool though since you can have 2 6Ls while using them (potentially) ;) Survivability mainly comes from killing stuff before it touches you. I currently have a little over 4k ES, which is generally more than enough unless I yolo and run into a pack of blue undying piercers next to The Reaver or something. ES regen (when I need it, which isn't often) comes from a blood rage gem (quality works wonders here) and ghost Reaver. I also run a grace aura and use a hybrid ES/EV chest, partially for better sockets, and partially to give me a 42% chance to evade (which scales against projectiles with ondar's guile). I also go right past IR without taking it, EV is cool :D Oh, and another reason why darkray vectors is the best unique in the game: 16% chance to dodge with 8 frenzy charges. Don't get that kinda damage reduction with many items. Blood dance my ass. Yeah that was basic enough I think.
Skill tree
This is an endgame build, so levelling as a bow witch may not be particularly easy or quick. I levelled with a bow but only really because I didn't really have much idea what kinda endgame character I wanted at the time :D Standard skill tree That's what I consider to be the endgame tree for my character - level 89. I'm currently 85 and in the process of getting the last few minor nodes near the ranger starting area.
Some notes:
-Sure, a lot a points are used to get to the 3rd frenzy charge, which may superficially seem unnecessary. However that path provides a lot of the dex needed to wield your bow in the first place and gets you 3 very useful nodes along the way as well (diamond flesh, celerity, frenzy charge duration) so unless you have massive dex boosts on your gear or go for the vaal pact variation (below) it's worthwhile. -Since you'll be using a bow (probably lioneye's) and quite a few str-based gems you'll need a total of 212 dex and 109 str. This setup gives you 214 dex and 74 str (and 190 int) on the tree (including the witch's implicit bonuses). Therefore if you don't have adequate str bonuses on your gear you'll either have to use lower levelled gems or respec slightly. 10 str can be instantly obtained for 1 point between the witch and shadow starting areas, but if you need more then you'll have to drop some DPS nodes and the route to the 3rd frenzy charge would have to be REDIRECTED. This also means dropping celerity though, which is the best notable in the game :( -"WTFOMFGBBQS U NOOB WTF U DOIN EVERY CI NEEDS VAAL PACT~@#%?*". Simple response: I like glass cannon dps, more skill to survive innit. Personally I manage just fine for nearly everything, reflect mobs are pretty easy to spot and personally I just dont run reflect maps. But if you really want extra survivability (or going HC), then I'd suggest something like THIS. It loses a frenzy charge, run speed, and charge duration though, which is annoying :( Also you might want to run a life leech gem rather relying purely on blood rage for healing (defo reflect maps at least - the normal version cant do these). This takes up an extra gem slot too :[ sad times.
Skills
These are the links I use based on my sockets and preferences. Different gear may mean that different combinations are optimal. I currently use a 5L for frenzy and 6L for split arrow, though both can work perfectly adequately as a 4L as well (though obviously lower damage). Single brackets represent a 5th linked gem, double brackets a 6th linked gem. Chest ~ Single target attack: Frenzy Frenzy - Added fire damage - Weapon elemental damage - Mana leech - (Added lightning damage) - ((Increased critical multiplier)) I use mana leech mainly from when I was doing less damage and couldn't hit the leech cap from Mind Drinker alone. I'll probably replace it with increased crit multiplier soon. Frenzy scales extremely well off quality so I recommend a high qual gem. Likewise added lightning - the implicit chance to shock is awesome, only use that as high quality too. I also have a portal gem on my chest cus, y'know, it's awesome. ----- Bow ~ AOE attack: Split Arrow Split Arrow - Pierce - Added fire damage - Weapon elemental damage - (Increased critical multiplier) - ((Reduced Mana)) Reduced mana was my 6th link only really to reduce the mana burden. While it is manageable without, it means popping a mana flask more often than I'd like and I'm lazy. It does more than enough damage without a DPS 6th link anyway. Pierce should be at least 9% quality so that your pierce chance becomes 100% with a lvl 20 gem. Higher qual means reaching 100% pierce sooner. ----- Helmet ~ Auras Reduced mana - Discipline - Wrath - Hatred I hope I don't need to explain this. ----- Boots ~ Auras/Blood rage Reduced mana - grace Blood rage - Increased duration Quality blood rage helps A LOT. a 20/20 gem will leech 10% of phys damage instead of just 6%. ----- Gloves ~ Curses Critical weakness - Temporal chains - Faster casting - Increased area of effect Crit weakness is your main weapon. Spam it on everything. IAOE means you can hit massive packs all at once which is nice. I only very rarely use chains any more but can be useful whilst you're still squishy or occasionally on stuff like the Bazaar bosses on a map with the twinned mod - otherwise you just get charged by 6 bosses at once which is not cool.
Gear
HIGHLY recommended/essential
Yeah ik Lioneyes, what did you expect. Unless you can find some insane phys dps rare bow Lioneye's will always be your best option by far. and the mana mod helps A LOT This + WED + ele dmg mods on gear = GG damage. Simples. Just to note, physical dmg multipliers, added fire gem and hatred add damage based on the physical damage BEFORE it's converted into fire by this item. So insane damage is maximised. The best item in the game. All these badkids raving about the Blood Dance when the true king of frenzy has been out way longer. With this build (using 20/20 frenzy specifically) Darkray Vectors essentially give the equivalent of 12% increased physical damage, 23% increased attack speed, 4% increased evasion (all from +1 frenzy charge), 40% movement speed, 20-40% lightning resist, and a 16% chance to dodge all attacks. Now try telling me that's not OP. The drawbacks are relatively minor, light radius doesn't exactly do much - you get used to it quickly. And you can recharge all your frenzy charges with a single SA hit anyway (if they even run out - even with 50% reduced duration you're moving between mobs so fast they rarely expire). The charge duration reduction is also additive so you still get 8 seconds before the charges expire.
Other Gear
For the rest, aims are pretty standard. Max resists, and get as much ES, extra damage/crit, and additional mana as possible. Also try to get at least 35 strength from your equipment as well or you'll have to use lower-lvl gems or waste points getting extra strength on the tree .. :( This is what I'm currently using anyway: A note about the chest: You can basically choose between a pure ES or an ES/EV hybrid. I chose the latter since it means needing to roll fewer off-colours for my particular setup and gives me additional chance to evade (yay!) at the cost of a bit of ES. Also, it's usually cheaper :P personal preference really though. Maligaro's virtuosity gloves are also an option for gloves. Personally I don't use them since I wouldn't be able to max resists and they don't give ES, but with the right gear combinations they could be great. Also, thunderfists would probably be pretty awesome too but I'm poor :D
Flasks
Diamonds are your friends ^_^ I find 2 perpetual flasks is enough to be able to use them for most large mob packs. The mana flask helps occasionally but is mainly for backup use or for half-regen maps. The suffixes for these 3 are relatively inconsequential. Roll what you need most. The Quicksilvers are specialised - one is for fast clearing (adrenaline suffix) while the other is for running away if you get in a pickle :D perpetual/surgeon's prefix means you can have one running pretty much all the time, which is awesome. The heat suffix is self explanatory - since you're CI and not using Auxium (at least I don't) getting frozen can be annoying if stuff actually hits you (Asphyxia + multi projs >o<). Don't really need 2 adrenaline since you kill stuff quickly enough to refill the first most of the time, the second is a backup. For all flask prefixes: Surgeon's > Perpetual >>> Ample > Other junk
Bandits
Normal: Skill point Cruel: Help Oak Merciless: Help Kraityn Getting mana in normal is not worthwhile. If you desperately need mana, spend the extra skill point on the 8% mana node(s) near Iron Reflexes, it'll give you more and is transferrable. I actually helped Kraityn in cruel on my char, mainly since I didn't really have an endgame build in mind at the time. Tbh I don't think it matters too much but, at least for single target dps, Oak would allow for more damage (since you get so much additional speed (additive) from frenzy anyway) as well as a slightly lower mana burden.
Map mods
I never do stasis, BM or reflect (phys or ele) map mods with this char. Reflect may be viable with the vaal pact alternate build (with extra ES) but personally I just reroll any reflect maps I get or do them on my duelist who can handle them.
Incombustable and Smothering are annoying but definitely doable. All other mods are fine. I thrive off temporal chains and exposure, dat quant bonus ;D Double temple piety with temp chains and ele weakness is fine (that was a fun map ;D), the only boss I have trouble with is the jungle valley weaver cus of all the flicker spiders. It's still doable by running between corners and shooting into the centre but risky, I've died a few times there.
Some Screenies
All with 8 frenzy charges, auras up, and quicksilver/blood rage active.
  
Video
Easy dunes map (original short-notice demo)
Harder Gorge map (follow-up slightly less short notice demo) Compliment, critique, discuss, flame, go for it gentlemen :) Always appreciative to hear feedback on this and happy to answer any questions. For try for see and for know. IGN: Sap Last edited by Bed#6416 on Nov 12, 2013, 5:30:57 PM
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I've been trying to make something similar(I found some Thunderfists so I figured why not), still looking for a good bow first though. Couple questions:
Is it worth such high damage and low MF? If you cut your damage down and your clear speed dropped, could the better drops make up for it? I'm assuming from what you've said that you probably kill most things before a culler can except maybe bosses. Of course it could be that you're after xp more than loot. |
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Where are the videos??
IGN Riokar | My guides
[2.0]Non legacy Mjölner. Uber down. -thread/1474288 [2.0]Shatter Chuck Lite COC -thread/1324981 [2.0]SRS Magic Find Culler. Uber capable. /w budged build -thread/1406603 [2.0]NEWBIE MF/DPS Summoner -thread/479976 | Power leveling guide -thread/522556 |
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Tbh I don't play for items - High MF = loot explosion = screen clutter = xp waste :P
I actually used to use IQ/IR gems on split arrow instead of reduced mana/increased crit damage which let me run around at about 120/70, but I switched to more dps cus dps is awesome. And without a 6L you won't be doing too much damage if you use both MF gems. If you're going purely for item farming then MF sporker is always going to be best unfortunately, though with a high enough clear speed you can still end up getting a lot of drops while playing a build that's actually fun :) ------- I actually did record a video of me full clearing tropical island in 3 minutes for this (sorry no high maps at the time hehe xD), but for some weird reason it recorded in x4 speed, plus screen recorder makes me lag like hell anyway... I might get round to making a proper video sometime if I can actually find a decent screen recorder... For try for see and for know.
IGN: Sap | |
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I recommend BandiCam. Amazing recorder.
Necronomicon: https://www.pathofexile.com/forum/view-thread/1617098
Build: https://www.pathofexile.com/forum/view-thread/409940 Summoner Dischord: https://discord.gg/XwWdSUa Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/zhoukon |
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Thanks for suggestion matt, bandicam worked way better than the other ones I've tried :) quickly recorded a 3:20 dunes clear as a demo and uploading atm - once I get some higher/harder ones I might upload them too :)
For try for see and for know.
IGN: Sap | |
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For try for see and for know.
IGN: Sap | |
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Hey just wondering why no Maligaro's? It seems like it would fit well with this build.
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Maligaro's is definitely an option. Using my pair in place of my regular gloves I get a tooltip dps increase from 26.3k to 29.7k on frenzy and 11.8k to 13.3k on split arrow.
The reason I haven't done so far is that, with my current gear at least, I wouldn't be able to max out my resists without replacing gear that would lower my dps to pre-maligaro levels anyway, and the lack of ES on maligaro's makes me slightly squishier. But definitely feasible with the right gear combinations, I'll note that in the main guide. For try for see and for know.
IGN: Sap | |
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Ahh ok. That makes alot of sense.
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