ZiggyD's Etheral Knives Mana Shield Scion/Shadow Build Guide - Hardcore (Updated for 1.1)

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Phalthallus wrote:

I'm curious why both Isu and ZiggyD neglected the projectile damage nodes at the starting area for Shadow, and went with cast speed and spell damage instead. Are you guys not planning on using EK any more? I thought that EK only benefited physical/projectile damage, and not from spell damage nodes.

Also, since you are so close to Point Blank (two nodes), is it worth grabbing? I was thinking with the tankiness of this build, you could really benefit from that, and just face-tanking stuff while you check out knives. Thoughts?

EDIT:
This is the build I came up with yesterday before seeing both of those builds. The #'s are a lot different, but after comparing the base and + max % for life and mana both, they aren't as different as they first appear.

http://poebuilder.com/#character/AAAAAgYAAP0VIBdQGNsZhhmKHNweGh6UJDwmlSepKaUqTSpbLOktRy2DMZ41kjZ7OuE8jj8nSTtJUUp9SshMLU3jTipQQlM1VUtWLVb6Wm1br18qZ6Bqk21sbXtuaW6qb550QXRVdPF4unzOf8aCHoMJhTKHdohCiPGMNo_6kyeXBpu1n3uhIqTCplenXKw_rEesf7QMtKO1SLXytkG7476nwA_BxcM6w23EosS4ykrSGdJN1e3V-NbR2wvcV90N6rrrLOvk7BjyRfT4_MX-j_66_5M=

As someone else mentioned EK is a spell and benefits from both spell damage and projectile damage mods. The spell damage nodes we get are more powerful than the proj damage ones in terms of raw % damage (thank you patch 1.1!).

Also, EK as a spell wont work with Iron Grip (it does work with the Iron Will Support gem though!)

Mad props to Isu, I just went through your tree about a dozen times and it's perfect. I'm in love with it man.

http://www.pathofexile.com/passive-skill-tree/AAAAAgYBDkgRlhUgFecWbxcvGNsZhRmGGYoabBqPHNwdqh6UJDwkqiaVJ6ko-imlKk0s6S2DL2826TyORZ1GcUlRSn1OKlBCVUtVxlXWVi1XyVptW69irGTnZ6Bte2-ecLtzs3Txeqp_xoCkgh6Cx4MJg9uFMod2iEKMNo9GkyeXBprgm7Wdqp2uoi6nCKdcrD-sR6x_tAy4k7vjwcXDOsSiykrOcc9l0NDVT9ad2RPbC9xX3Q3ed-GI42rquuss6-7wa_Pd9tr56PrS-wn8S_zF_ro=

As such I'm going to update the OP now and make it the official tree. <3 thanks for your help!

OP has been almost fully updated for Sacrifice of the Vaal 1.1! The only thing to add is the passive tree progression, I might have a video coming for that.

Thanks for all the help and feedback on the build everyone!

Maybe I'm missing something but how is the Shadow supposed to use Added Fire Damage having only 36 of Str? Or is the gem supposed to be low level?

a little OT because it bothers me/I don't want to reroll: if the Scion is not the best class anymore if you want to pick nodes on opposite sides of the tree, what's it good for then?

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alexrm wrote:

Maybe I'm missing something but how is the Shadow supposed to use Added Fire Damage having only 36 of Str? Or is the gem supposed to be low level?

written in blood and physique nodes = 50 str

There doesn't seem to be many strength nodes taken on the tree as of 1.1/shadow... How effective is the Iron Will support due to this?

I wonder if the DPS output would be greater using something like, say, Power Charge on Critical for example.

Has anybody tried this?

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nightblade157 wrote:

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alexrm wrote:

Maybe I'm missing something but how is the Shadow supposed to use Added Fire Damage having only 36 of Str? Or is the gem supposed to be low level?

written in blood and physique nodes = 50 str

You're right. But the Softcore version doesn't have those points.

Maybe add those Str passives, making it a 109 points build or thinking about alternatives would be good.

Edit:

By the way: with 84 Str it doesn't have enough Str to run the CoDT setup as it is recommended.

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Fistofate wrote:

There doesn't seem to be many strength nodes taken on the tree as of 1.1/shadow... How effective is the Iron Will support due to this?

I wonder if the DPS output would be greater using something like, say, Power Charge on Critical for example.

Has anybody tried this?

I personally do not use iron will. I have a few different setups that I have used/tested on my current witch build as well as my previous scion. My favorite 5-Link is as follows.

EK -> Added Fire Damage -> Culling Strike -> Life Leech -> Added Chaos Damage

When I am farming I switch added chaos for item rarity. Culling strike is an endgame thing, it adds more damage than faster projectiles but you want a high level gem to avoid the cast speed penalty. If you can get a quality culling strike you can use it sooner. Also I recommend you have projectile speed from the tree and at least 30% projectile speed on your wand. To run Added chaos damage instead of faster casting you need a decent amount of cast speed on your gear, level one up and test it out from time to time to see when transitioning works for you.

For a 6th link I go for an empower, I don't worry about getting a 6 link until i have an empower and level it up.

If you want to run power charge on crit you would need to invest in enough crit chance to the power charges. I needed about 300% crit chance from the tree and gear to get the power charges rolling on my freeze pulse build.

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nosrek_scirocco wrote:

EK -> Added Fire Damage -> Culling Strike -> Life Leech -> Added Chaos Damage

How well does Added Chaos Damage scale? AT level 20, since we aren't taking +chaos damage in the tree, is it just an additional 161-242 damage? I was thinking of using it myself, but that seems a tiny addition to DPS for one slot.