[3.0] [Saboteur] - GC Miner - Life / MoM / EB + The Covenant || Shaper Down on a 5 Link

Diamond flask is mandatory as is atziri's promise.
No mana flask is necessary because all of our mines are cast from life
The remaining three flasks are up to preference, I use an instant anti-bleed life flask, sulphur flask and granite flask for extra physical mitigation, although I'll probably drop it for taste of hate once I can afford one. Quicksilver could be substituted in for sulphur or granite depending on preference.

The Oak shield is used for the high amounts of life and life regeneration plus the fact that a good roll is fairly easy to come by. For rings, I use diamond rings prioritizing life and energy shield for prefixes + whatever resistances are necessary to cap. A good marble amulet with life, % energy shield, and crit multi should work + any resistances should work nice, as getting spell damage and additional crit gets very expensive. A good leather belt with life, es, and open suffix for tora mine damage craft should be prioritized. For gloves again life/es + resistances on a fingerless silk gloves base.

For helm, you should prioritize getting the 40% conversion enchant for glacial cascade. Ideally on a helm with some life. I'm using starkonja because I found one at a decent price, although there were some very cheap Devoto's available if you don't mind giving up the life that starkonja's or a good rare offers.

For boots, simply look for boots with movement speed, and the 120% increased critical strike chance if you haven't crit recently. Your mines inherit your stats, and when they kill they are credited with kills, not you, and so this enchant effectively always acts as 120% increased crit chance for your mines. Life and resists are a bonus on the boots, I managed to get mine very cheap but they can be very expensive depending on how many other stats you are looking for.

Jewels with life/es, and crit multiplier are ideal, although mine damage, % damage, and area damage would still work.

I've gotten to the point where the damage is good enough that I can use a brightbeak and clear t15 maps easily. Haven't tried any guardians since I started using it.

For leveling I recommend using the Princess Sabre which should best your BiS weapon up until you start getting to a good crit dagger with spell damage, crit multi, and crit chance for spells. For reference the dagger I am currently using only beats the princess by 2000 average damage per mine.

Current Tree at level 90:
https://www.pathofexile.com/fullscreen-passive-skill-tree/3.0.1/AAAABAYDAQQHBLMFQgceCNQLYQxfDkgPxBEtES8RlhHCFr8cpxzcHU8jXyaVKgssnC0fMhgy0TW5Nj03Fzt8PAU8LUGWQixFR0WdSVFMs1MxU1JTpVVLVcZd8mHiYk9irGjyakNqjGyMcFFwUnC7c211_XZvfIN-sH_Ggh6DX4PMg9uEb4UyidOMNo8aj_qVIJUumuCbmp2qndmgQ6B5ogCio6LZpyuus69ssNizA7TFtUi3Prd1uMq5BrmTvOrAZsHFwfPDCcauyBTJBtAf0PXUQthU2L3bC9vn62Pr7uv17BjuFe988B_w1fD58h31b_af_go=

Projected Level 100 PoB pastebin:
https://pastebin.com/kz7zGSGa
(fills out scion life wheel, grabs more jewel sockets and crit/crit multi)

For leveling rush clever construction, then pick up Saboteur, next pathing to volatile mines while grabbing written in blood along the way for some extra life, and then pick up as much life as possible pathing near eldritch battery and then past MOM to the templar area towards the scion life wheel. Once you can wear the covenant you can spec into eldritch battery, and you can spec into MOM once your energy shield pool is ~40% of your life pool to have maximum utilization. From there you can grab more damage nodes as needed and pick up some useful life regeneration nodes.

Ascendancy Points:
1. Bomb Specialist
2. Detonation Specialist
3. Explosives Expert
4. Blinding Assault or 2 small nodes (personal preference, I like the added defenses of free blind)

Bandits:
I chose Oak because I value the 1% life regeneration and increased physical damage, although killing all could easily fit into the tree as well.

Pantheon:
Major: Brine King for freeze/stun immunity.
Tukohama's for additional life regeneration/damage reduction while spamming mines.

Main
6 link in order of importance: Glacial Cascade - Remote Mine - Minefield - Concentrated Effect - Trap and Mine Damage - Elemental Focus OR Controlled Destruction* (Note: I am currently using inc. AOE for general mapping as the damage is enough to 1 shot packs without ele focus)

*If shattering is important to you, you should have enough crit to fairly comfortably run controlled destruction

Aura
4 link: Hatred + Herald of Ash + Discipline + Enlighten (level 3/4)*
*level 4 enlighten allows you to drop two skill points

Utility
3 link: Frost Bomb - Trap - Cluster trap (Lowers resistances and grants bonus damage from Bomb Specialist)
3 link: Detonate Mines - Faster Casting - Spell Totem
3 link: Vaal Discipline + Vaal Discipline + increased duration (allows us to sustain ES on our mana when taking damage)
1 link: stone golem
4 link: Shield Charge - Faster Attacks - Blood Magic - Fortify

Mapping: I usually shield charge near a pack, flask up, drop 1-2 mines and then manually detonate. For harbinger packs I will drop a few traps as well as the totem and spam mines which usually works really well.

For bosses:
1. Put down detonation totem
2. Throw traps
3. Move within mine targeting range and begin spamming mines
4. Enjoy the insane dps.