CI EK Block (Rathpith Globe + Cybil's Paw) - please review

Hi,

I'd like to build a "battlemage" but I need some feedback from you. :)
With 3 unique items, it is possible to build 70% block and spell block.

First, I've thought about a cold witch, but it needs lots of crit nodes to be more effective (with freezing).
My next favorite skill is the Ethereal knives. I don't want to build to crit, so just focus on spell damage, energy shield, block, and little cast speed.

With this tree

and unique items

Rathpith Globe
Cybil's Paw
Stone of Lazhwar

For auras:
- Tempest shield
- Discipline
Later (maybe with Alpha's Howl), it is possible to run Hatred also. Of course everything with Reduced mana.

For skills:
- EK + Faster casting (+ Life leech + Mana leech) + Added fire damage + Faster projectiles
- CWDT + Enfeeble + Enduring cry + Molten shell
- Blood rage (gives us frenzy charges - max. 4 = 20% cast speed - and life leech)

You get 70% block and more than 100% block to spell block (with min roll shield also), so at least 70% spell block also (with tempest shield).

The cybil's paw gives 6% spell damage / 5% block chance, which means:
spell damage from cybil = (70 / 5) * 6 = 84%
Also gives a little life gain on hit by spell, cast speed and mana. So everything cool. :)

The block chance:
- 30% from the shield
- 36% from tree
- 4% from tempest shield

For the remaining points, I've thought to pick up Faith and Steel at the templar, which gives 16% ES and 8% allres.

What do you think? Is this build viable?
I fear from some things, like stunlock (because you can be stunned if you block), status alignments. And because I have to gear to ES, I'll have small Evasion and Armour and I don't want 1 shot deaths.

Thanks for your help!

I wouldn't recommend using a CI build:
1) Aside from faster casting you don't need any blue gems for EK. Eiher you cripple yourself by restricting EK to a 4-L or you will have to spend a huge amount of chromes trying to roll 4 (or 5 on a 6L) off-colours on an ES chest.
2) Without eye of chayula you will get stunlocked.

Going for a life build can avoid those problems + wearing armour has a synergy effect with EK as it helps against reflect.
BTW iron will is a good support gem for EK especially when going for a life-armour build. Stacking STR by wearing deshret's vise gauntlets helps both defense and offense.

Thanks for your reply.
I'm also thinking on a life-based build. The only reason why I've posted the CI version is the shield, which gives only ES. And of course, the chaos damage isn't a problem anymore and I can use blood rage.

However, this is the life-based version. According to poebuilder, it has 214% life, and 1% life regen. The gearing can also be easier, the ES items are pretty expensive.

And yea, coloring an ES chest to have only 1 blue... This is something what I forgot :)

Without CI, I have to drop blood rage, which means I loose:
- 20% cast speed (with 4 max charges)
- 4-6% life leech (so the life leech gem is a must have)

Btw, for a CI crit cold witch, the stun isn't a problem? Or it freezes everything and never get hit? :)

EDIT:
And if I wear an armor-based chest, will I get enough armour from it? Having only 2-3k armour seems pretty low.

If you don't take crit passives you could drop the whole shadow side. In this modified tree you have 3.5% life reg; enough to run blood rage. The block nodes might be enough as a block nerf is to be expected with the expansion (my bet is on lowering max block to 50%).
modified life build
With that many STR i really recommend using iron will as support for EK.

BTW mind drinker doesn't work with spells, only attacks.

And every CI build (cold or not) that doesn't use the eye or has minions/dual totems for distraction has a problem with stun.

Oh, nerfing block? :( Bad news.
I've played blocking melee characters, but it can be boring. So I just want to switch back to ranged (my first characters were ranged :)) with acceptable tankiness and... :(

With only 50% block, I think it's better to build a crit cold. Blocking is an OP thing in the game, but the 75% isn't always enough. I mean blocking is not everything. With 75%, you get 1 hit from every 4 attack (at least), you have to survive that 1 hit.

Well, yeah, the mind drinker is a good point. :)
I forgot to put Iron will to the original post, but I keep it on my weapon swap socket, and leveling up... :D

If the max block will be 50%, your build will probably works better. Has more life, 77% allres, 30% reduced damage from crit, more life regen, and tons of str nodes. Iron will is a must have in this scenario.

Thanks for your help! :)

- you wont get life leech via Blood Rage (only physical ATTACK damage will get the life leech bonus)
- mind drinker wont work(ony ATTACK damage, EK is classified as a spell!)
- too much block; to feel ok with ES/Block you need arround 16k EHP (i.e. 8k ES and 50% block)
- Without chayula/unwavering you will never pass lv69 maps, ill promise ;)
- drop all block reco and resists nodes, they arent necessary.
- i personally would remove faster proj for WED; especially if you later can use hatred

interesting build tho; possibly you can try chayula/rathpith/rainbows (with perfect rolls you can get 97% of block app to spells)

Oh yeah, I shouldn't try thinking when I'm tired. :D
Blood rage and Mind drinker were fault. At lest, the 4 frenzy charges from Blood rage give 20% cast speed. :)

The "too much block" thing: well... The base idea was the tanky melee characters with high/max block chance. I want it to turn casting instead of melee attacking. I like ranged playstile. :) So I wanted to build a tanky caster, and imho blocking is the best way to achieve it. And the Cybil's paw works very well with block chance (84% spell damage is pretty good I think)

I know, the stun-ting is a big problem. However, compared to other builds, like ZiggyD's EK Scion (I think this is a good/interesting and - it seems - working build), they also don't have stun-resistance. I've never found a stun-immune-tanky caster (especially not EK or Freezing pulse), but I may miss something.

The Chayula + Rainbowstride can be viable if you have perfect rolls as you mentioned. Good idea. :)

Thanks for your reply.

I know what are you talking, but I wanted to share it. :)

Staying at the original life-based concept (as high block and spell block as possible), a Scion start could be viable.

According to poebuilder, the base life is 254, life% is 210, life regen 2,5%. Also, high amount of str (Iron Will works better) 72% block, and stun-immune.

Bada_Bing's life-based version has 276 base life, 186% life, 3,5% life regen.

However, it has unnecessary ES from shield which is not converted to mana.

Ziggy's EK doesn't have stun problems because it is a life based build. Only CI builds have stun problems -> stun mechanics.

Starting as a witch has the advantage of the easy access to Eldritch Battery, which you probably will need to sustain EK.
Another possibility would be to go for a scion with EB and MoM as extra security layer. In that case i would only run grace for additional armour (with Iron Reflexes) and clarity so to have enough mana to absorb some damage. The build is a bit short on life though:
scion EB-MoM-IR

After the new patch, I've started playing this build.

Works pretty well, unfortunately, I've died two times. The first one was a huge desync: I thought it was okay playing in chamber of sins with 50 lightres. "Okay, I'll be careful, and everything is okay" - yea, it was, until a huge lagg. :)
The second was on the museum map, somehow all the mobs in the boss room comes to me. I've though I'm tanky enough to kill them... well.. I'm not. :D

At least, it was pretty easy to level with this character. However, it's not a boss-killer, but I can solo until merciless Vaal. Maybe I could kill it, but it takes too much time.

Have 3,3k life, 71% block, 75% (85% :D) spell block and 3,5k dps with lvl17 EK + faster proj + faster casting + life leech + blood magic and hatred aura. With a 6l and lvl20 EK, the DPS will be a littlebit better, but still lower than a melee character. At least, I'm ranged. :)

This is the current passive. I don't need unwavering yet, pretty rare when a mob stuns me. Currently, I'm rushing to elemental adaptation, then I don't know exactly:
- get that 2+2 block chance at scion start
- get 16+16+18+16 armour + 20% less from crit at maraduer
- rush to eldritch battery (and pick up clear mind - 16% chaos res)
I have ~600 ES and ~500 mana. With EB, my mana would be >1000, but I'm not sure that I could drop blood magic.

I think my biggest weakness is the low armour. I'm blocking lots of attacks, but when I get one, it can hurt a lot. So I'm tinking on the armour nodes and get an extra 5% reduced mana reserved, so I could run tempest shield + hatred + grace on mana (with this step, I have to use blood magic, because I don't have close to any mana)
reduced (hatred, grace) = 2 * 60 * 0.71 (reduced mana gem) * 0.95 (5% passive) = 80-81%
reduced (tempest) = 25 * 0.71 * 0.95 = 17%
reduced mana = 80-81 + 17 = 97-98%