[1.xx] Islidox's Build tips/critique section for Rangers

@crushkyle: No problem, glad to be of help.

Regarding your single-target, that's too many steps to accomplish for the same result. Frenzy shines when you spend passives to gain more Frenzy charges. Not only your speed builds up, but you gain phys dmg per charge as well for the Frenzy skill. If you don't spec for Frenzy, then BA's DPS will be better obviously. However, Frenzy's DPS potential far outweighs BA, especially in lategame. Frenzy setup should be as such:

Frenzy + PPAD + FA + Mana Leech (don't use BM, you'll be using too much life) + Inc Crit Strikes

I can't seem to see your build (link not working), but it sounds about right.

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Nice guide for those that are getting their foot on the ground, great work!!

@Islidox,

Haha, you are truly prescient! I have 3 4Ls, all 3G:1R. So I ended up specing the Frenzy to be Frenzy+FA+PPAD+BM, as that was the only way to reduce the mana cost. And indeed I found on a boss I had to drink potions at the same time as using frenzy, and twice killed myself when he hit me, LOL. I'm thinking of rolling chromes to get one to 4Gs. If it's a dex-based armour, any idea of the odds?

I know I need eventually to get a 5L, but it looks like that's at least 2 weeks away if not more (I was told a 'mediocre 5L would be 15Chaos). So I'm sticking to my 4Ls for a while I guess

I did get my resists near maxed by buying a new ring, this lets me aim for CHD on my ammy so I'll keep my eyes out

Thanks again for the advice, cheers

Glad to be of help guys!


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I've also made a few changes with my phys/crit/evade/dodge Ranger build, mainly speccing out of Phase Acrobatics (for now) and putting those points into Heavy Draw for more life/dmg.

Honestly speaking, Phase Acro won't save you from the physical spells that every other mob seem to do. Undying Evangelists and Vaal Constructs take the cake as the highest threats to survivability. I'd rather have more HP than waste points in Phase Acro pre-lvl90.

Build on page 30 has been updated, including the numbers section and the leveling guide.

I recently stumbled upon this game more or less by accident (it went under my radar because I usually ignore F2P games due to their terrible payment models) and decided to give it a try. I was a long-time D2 player and I was always looking for a game that came close to the experience. I have a feeling the Devs nailed it with PoE, although I'll have to see about the endgame content...

Anyway, my favorite char on D2 was the Amazon, especially the glass-cannon builds using multishot to clear everything from a screen or two away, with dodge as a lifesaver for everything that made it through the hail of arrows. As I discovered the principal components are present in PoE too, I went with a Split Arrow/Frenzy build with Evasion/Acrobatics Ranger for my first character because I thought it would suit my playstyle.

This thread has been tremendously useful and so far I've been mostly successful...
I'm at lvl 65 in merciless now (still in act 2, but not for much longer I hope) and I can solo most stuff except for bosses. The last few things that proved problematic were Cruel Piety (I guess lightning res >20 could've saved me some portal scrolls there), Cruel Dominus (I just partied up straight away) and recently the Weaver's army of spiders (I guess I should have remembered to slot Pierce). Shooting stuff offscreen and kiting annoying rares works out decently, and occassionally critting things to death is fun.
I think I'll be mostly okay if I trade for better gear (honestly it's too depressing to show here - about time I started trading) and step up my skill game with some utility (honestly I'm just using my main attacks at the moment).

Currently my passive tree looks like this:

...and I'm a bit at a loss what to grab first now, because there are so many delicious noteables I want... Thick Skin, Heavy Draw, Acceleration via Fury Bolts, the Assassination Cluster, plus a reachout to Bloodthirst, Mind Drinker and Critical Mass, or Haste and Mental Acuity or maybe I'll want Charisma (possibly also the Influence cluster) to start using Auras (Hatred seems nice) and so forth...
I can also still spec out of 13 points or so, but other than Pressure Points so far I'm not sure if there's anything I'd like to spec out of.

@StahlregenX: In terms of build progression, I think you need to consider the following - which notable is more important to you at that stage of the game? 79-point build is barely scratching the surface of the notables you need. I consider most builds finished around the level 83-84 mark.

This is my opinion, but Phase Acrobatics is a lategame keystone. I would spec out of it and leave it for the lvl 90s tbh. I think the notables you should aim for are Mind Drinker for it's 2% mana leech. Along the way to Mind Drinker you can pick up Nullification (+EVR and +all rez) and Assassination. The Heavy/Deadly Draw cluster is something I leave for the level 80s. Also, you grabbed your last Frenzy node a tad early. I would spend those points into Master Fletcher or Fury Bolts. You'll also need the Mana Flows for more mana, and you'll also get access to Acceleration and Leather&Steel.

Your tree should look something like this:
79-point build
91-point build
104-point build

You might notice that I aim for more defensive/resource passives first than offensive passives. The period from lvl 60-80 is a transition phase where you are settling down with your equipment. Better to focus on survivability and let your weapon upgrade take care of the DPS. At least, that's my philosophy when leveling. Hope this helps.

Thanks for the feedback Islidox.

Personally, I'm more of the "a good offense is the best defense" persuasion.
As this is my first char and up to now I've played mostly selffound, +%damage was a concern to compensate for subpar bows.

The main problem I had while playing was spells and elemental damage. Most mobs get shot quite a distance away and die before they get into meelee range. The totally broken Ondar's Guile takes care of normal ranged attacks.
Since my overall resistances are rather bad due to crappy gear, I found Phase Acrobatics quite attractive, and the additional dodge doesn't hurt, either. It would likely be the superior choice to just get better res from gear, though.

I agree that the rush for the last Frenzy Point is premature. Frenzy is fun, though, so it's hard to resist. ;)

Mind Drinker would probably help with Mana costs, although I find that Flasks (they come with nice extra goodies like res and leech, too) still work out decently at the moment. It's only really been an issue with boss fights without additional mobs up to now. Have you found Mana Flows to be a necessity?

Personally I'd only spec into Master Fletcher if I needed the added 20% Accuracy - apart from it you're basically spending 3 points for 24% physical bow damage, which works out to 8% per point. And then, it's probably better to take 8% projectile damage nodes or 12% physical bow damage ones (for your build, too, I'd rather take the 3 nodes before Piercimg Shots for 30% bow dmg and 25% critical strike chance unless you loose too much accuracy that way).

I'm not quite sure Nullification is worth it, either - the res is nice, but the evasion bonus is quite small. I'd rather have Leather & Steel because it comes with a substantial amount of Evasion, plus it increases your mobility. Too bad Sentinel isn't closer.

@StahlregenX: I can definitely understand that. Then again, it won't be until you hit maps where things start to really hurt and you'll want to be beefed up before then. And yes, getting those resistances capped is paramount and a must before hitting maps.

Mind Drinker is a must. However, in your case, Mana Flows may not be necessary considering. See, I use RoA and linked with Concentrated Area of Effect, it shoots the mana cost up a lot. Each shot costs 44 mana. Let's say you use SA with FA, PPAD, ICS, and ICD (GGGBB) 5L setup, you're looking at a 25 mana cost. If you use Pierce and switch out ICD or ICS, your mana cost will go lower as well. In light of this, I would recommend leaving Mana Flows last to get on your list of must-get notables. This is to test and see how your mana fares with 2 auras on. Obviously in half-regen maps you'll be potting more.

Now that you mention it, I can definitely spec out of Master Fletcher (leave til later) and reroute those points into Deadly Draw. Looks like this old bird can learn a few things :P. I'd lose about 2% chance to hit from 85% to 83%, but that's nothing compared to getting 40% crit chance, 40% IPD, and 50% crit mult.

Believe me, you'll want Nullification. +8 all rez can save you some gear hassle (rez doesn't have to be perfect per gear piece.). There's also an easy +6 all rez node by the Master Fletcher/Fury Bolts junction as well. You can grab that temporarily before you get some rather good gear, then respec out of later. Leather and Steel is great, but from what I've seen, it's not a must if you have 20+ movespeed on your boots. It's why I haven't specced into L&S yet and leaving it til later levels.