[2.5/2.6] Beginner's Elementalist Dual Flameblast Totems

Hello. I tried a variation of this build, courtesy of Zizaran, and even without the cast speed wands, a switch to Dual Totems at around level 35 (as soon as Ancestral Bond was available) worked wonders. However, after some thinking, I found your variation (more life nodes, golems) more preferable, but I picked the spell damage nodes instead of the cast speed ones at the very beginning of the skill tree. Will the difference be rather neglible or will I have to start over from scratch?

Also, in case I didn't understand it well enough, are you eschewing a defensive item in favor of a second wand?

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Arraphyn wrote:

Hello. I tried a variation of this build, courtesy of Zizaran, and even without the cast speed wands, a switch to Dual Totems at around level 35 (as soon as Ancestral Bond was available) worked wonders. However, after some thinking, I found your variation (more life nodes, golems) more preferable, but I picked the spell damage nodes instead of the cast speed ones at the very beginning of the skill tree. Will the difference be rather neglible or will I have to start over from scratch?

Also, in case I didn't understand it well enough, are you eschewing a defensive item in favor of a second wand?

Hello Mr. A.

Yes, sir, a swap earlier is certainly doable. It would depend on what you're comfortable with and the content. I swapped this league around level, I think 41? I still did use the wands. Reason being that I still recommend having them is also why I generally recommend having two wands, though you could certainly go a tad more defensive with a wand + shield, is that having two cast speeds wands is also a defensive option. A good offense in this case is also a good defense. The faster we are able to cast and clear enemies, the better, and because we have the Cast Speed penalty incurred by the Spell Totem gem, and because of how the Spell Totem interacts with the Flame Blast skill gem in that it will only, generally, detonate the spell when it has a full 10 stacks, by allowing it to get there faster you increase the accuracy of the skill by allowing it to detonate quicker before enemies can move out of its area of effect, and also clearing enemies extremely quickly. As to how much time we're saving by using a second wand with, say, 20% cast speed I don't know. There's math to be done there but I literally just woke up and I'm a tad groggy. I just remember the difference being noticeable, though perhaps not significant, in my initial testing a couple leagues ago, but I also might be misremembering. I'd say do what feels good for your play style and comfort level!

Also, having selected the Spell Damage nodes in the beginning is not a huge deal. It is preferable to grab the Cast Speed nodes, and you can still switch at any time by simply using your respec points; just refund, I think 3, total points from anywhere in your tree. Then use those three points to select the cast speed and then remove the spell damage nodes and reallocate the three points you initially unallocated. The reason we want the Cast Speed here is because it is more beneficial to us because spell damage does not double dip whereas Elemental and Fire damage does.

...I think I answered that correctly, I'll check when I'm more cogent, but I hope this was helpful and best of luck to you, sir! :)

(If my phrasing is off, my apologies, I am a bit out of it)

Hey everyone, completely new player here.

This is probably a rather weird question, as everyone seems to know stuff like this, but still: Besides Firestorm, are there any other skills I should use for leveling? How many "active" skills should I even use at all?
Thanks!

Hello, I wanted to ask one question. Don`t u use any offensive aura like Anger etc.? Now I`am at level ~70 and i`am using anger for higher damage...

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Piene wrote:

Hey everyone, completely new player here.

This is probably a rather weird question, as everyone seems to know stuff like this, but still: Besides Firestorm, are there any other skills I should use for leveling? How many "active" skills should I even use at all?
Thanks!

No worries, asking questions especially in poe is not that weird :D.
I myself kind of just started playing poe a few days ago but I'll try to answer.

I think it does not matter how many actives skills you've got IF you find a good use for them. But for new players and leveling purpose I would not try to get a full bar of active skills.

I think Fire Storm is good enough for dealing dmg. You could use Freezing Pulse aswell if you like. And I think Flame Dash is very good for getting quicker from a to b till you have enough cast speed for Lightning Warp.

Dont forget put gems you need for this build or gems you have laying around into your gear and maybe even in your second weapon slots to level them, even if u dont use them actively on your bar :).

Ah and maybe if it helps you, I pretty much used what Zizaran mentioned in his build to level up till i could transition into FB Totem, but used James Tree, since i like it more.
Here a small summary.

I'm trying out this build after I ripped playing SRS, I see that in your guide you are not mentioning any auras, and no gems other than main GEM+links, golems, curse,CWDT and mobility.
Is this true?

Hello, I'm using your build and it's awesome, currently lvl 38, but I want to know if
is useful for that? I'm still using Firestorm and it's working like a charm, but I wonder if it makes sense when i switch to Flameblast?

This is a really dumb question, but am I supposed to be using Spell Totem with Firestorm while I level, or am I supposed to self-cast it? I've done both and I find things easier with spell totem as mobs attack the totem instead of me, but I'm wondering if this will cause issues on the higher levels before I switch over to FB totems.

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numou wrote:

This is a really dumb question, but am I supposed to be using Spell Totem with Firestorm while I level, or am I supposed to self-cast it? I've done both and I find things easier with spell totem as mobs attack the totem instead of me, but I'm wondering if this will cause issues on the higher levels before I switch over to FB totems.

I think you should wait till you change to Flameblast, at least that's what I do. Totem means a waste of slot, at lower levels it's crucial, and you can't max out the totem's power until you get Ancestral Bond.

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papaj42 wrote:

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numou wrote:

This is a really dumb question, but am I supposed to be using Spell Totem with Firestorm while I level, or am I supposed to self-cast it? I've done both and I find things easier with spell totem as mobs attack the totem instead of me, but I'm wondering if this will cause issues on the higher levels before I switch over to FB totems.

I think you should wait till you change to Flameblast, at least that's what I do. Totem means a waste of slot, at lower levels it's crucial, and you can't max out the totem's power until you get Ancestral Bond.

Thanks. I popped on elemental focus and controlled destruction to Firestorm, without spell totem, and it seems to be working much better now. :)