[Megathread] Path of Exile

[Coldkil]

And as every veteran starts to feel burned, i have just completed normal mode XD

And why i didn't discover the Blasphemy rune before? My build is thousandfolds better now.

[Vespian]

And as every veteran starts to feel burned, i have just completed normal mode XD

And why i didn't discover the Blasphemy rune before? My build is thousandfolds better now.

Hey Cold, I missed your message of june 16th (wtf?), but I'm still up to play\team up when you have the time. Not sure how lenient the game is with levels. I've left HC for the people that dedicate their lives to this game, because it tears me apart. I guess I'm just a lazy couch potato now. A.k.a. ..bad.

How did you do with Act IV Piety? Especially the red beam gets me every time. Somehow she always ends up hugging a wall and as soon as she does, there's no way, seriously no way, to dodge those beams anymore. My indestructible guy (well, so far) got wrecked on her. I've had some sweaty moments before and after, but she killed me at least 7 times with the beam alone. I do really wonder how people manage to beat her without dying. Maybe they're building specifically for that fight?

That said, I'm now in Cruel with that guy, A2 I think.

I have another character currently on her way to Piety in A3, so I can be in cruel with her soon as well. Can't wait to see how this build manages to survive against piety in A4. Maybe you just need dps.

[Coldkil]

-snip-

Np i log every once in a while in Discord since my private channel is now a channel for a small group playing OW which i join every once in a while.

Back on PoE: i didn't have issues with Piety mostly because i managed to find a couple of support gems which i didn't know about. She did go down pretty fast, though i didn't have issues of her hugging a wall so i could just run around to avoid the beam. Biggest change was the main attack - onto the details:

- Shadow, dual wield claws boosting physical and chaos damage. May swap on more DoT damage since i find being more reliant on that now. Took the node that makes leech istant since it's my main source of healing.

- main attack viper strike+melee splash support. Every hit poisons eveyone aoe and does much more single target damage than Reave (which i was using before).

- secondary attack contagion + poison support + void support for just straight more dot damage and aoe.

- assassin mark + blasphemy: this does a lot, it's a flowing stream of hp and mana back when things die.

I plan to add the projectile dot that gets spreaded by contagion - maybe as cast on crit or cast on melee kill. I unlocked cruel with no issues and first zones look more than manageable. Though i want to clear the labyrinth to unlock the ascendancy class before going ahead.

EDIT: i'm working also on a shield/wand+cold dmg+summons Scion. The 2h version wasn't cool enough.

[Vespian]

Yeah I guess if you can rotate around her she's rather easy to beat, but within the context of the game, you expect that the game behaves as such, that the ' can never win' scenario is prevented. PoE has this particular bossfight that's instant lose. Or reroll instance, which is just lame.

Since I have no problems with engine, can comfortably play through Steam Link and still not notice anything of a delay, ever since they fixed the desync, it's the amount of random death that withholds me from saying this game is the best ARPG in existence.

Example; Yesterday I was lvl 6 on my Witch. I got a prophecy saying that I would duel another exile. So there I was, looking for grandaddy crab and suddenly I'm jumped by some guy that used earthquake. Oh yeah, his level was capped. His skillgems weren't. There is literally no way to beat that exile at lvl 6. Why don't exiles behave according to the rules of the game? Lvl 6 means certain skill gems can't work, but exiles have no problems with a minigun-style earthquake.

That said, I do occasionally still poor some money into them, because they deliver.

[Coldkil]

Well, i found one time an istance of the Solaris Temple which was pretty much broken. The first room was just closed - no doorways or other meanings of continuing, until i noticed that across a gape there was still floor and enemies. I used a leap/port skill and was able to proceed, but this doesn't sound really correct or nice :P I just tried and it worked, but it was just a lucky guess.

The game is fun and my only complaint is the non optimized engine - which is as marginal as it can be. The game is solid and even if it's 3yo lots of people playing and plenty of support from devs. I may have started late, but i'm getting all the fun of a polished system.

EDIT: HERE the build i want to try.

[Vespian]

Well, i found one time an istance of the Solaris Temple which was pretty much broken. The first room was just closed - no doorways or other meanings of continuing, until i noticed that across a gape there was still floor and enemies. I used a leap/port skill and was able to proceed, but this doesn't sound really correct or nice :P I just tried and it worked, but it was just a lucky guess.

The game is fun and my only complaint is the non optimized engine - which is as marginal as it can be. The game is solid and even if it's 3yo lots of people playing and plenty of support from devs. I may have started late, but i'm getting all the fun of a polished system.

EDIT: HERE the build i want to try.

I'm by no means an expert, but aren't you dividing your strengths? You're going into block a long way, but what does it effectively mean with only 5% extra block chance (maybe ~+8 if you grab Storm Shield)? I also almost never go full circle, although in this case I guess it's a good choice, getting both resistances and block chance.

Also, you're over your points limit I think.
http://www.pathofexile.com/fullscree...no-oD60vuq_kk=

[Lysah]

You can save 10 points by dropping the puppet master and grave intentions clusters, as well as the basic minion life and minion leech nodes, you won't notice a difference with them anyway. I actually played a summoner this league that was quite good, ended up dying last night in uber lab with all 3 curses and fonts active, maybe a little too yolo (though he died almost the same time I did so a bit unlucky).

www.poeurl.com/HpC

[Coldkil]

Thanks for the tips, and i didn't actually realize that i could go over the points limit. As for diving strenghts, well, i'm all for pushing with my builds and see what's the limit.

I need to check what's the real difference between skeletons and zombies - especially if skeletons have life or are just time limited.

EDIT: does a setup exist to make minions cast other abilities with the correct support gems? I found that cast on crit doesn't work, i suppose also other setups won't work.

[Coldkil]

When making a build, you shouldn't really plan for anything over 90 (unless you already have a ton of 90+ characters and can get a new one up there in a few days)

Well, i used all points. Anyway i try to design them with the last damage points in mind - all the thing i want are reachable in a short time while progressing further would boost damage usually; so the only thing limiting me is low damage.

My issue is to understand how much defenses i can really sacrifice for offense - death is a penalty, so i try to limit that.

[Coldkil]

One of the main issues with this is the fact that the skill tree and skills changes relatively often, a lot of builds that worked during last league had to be reworked for this league, and most of those for the league before . If you don't plan on getting to 100 in the next 2 months or so, there's not much point in planning that far.

Also, good builds needs to be fluid, I always change things depending on how I feel, on items I get, on uniques enabling new ideas, etc. I used to plan for 100 when I started, now I really wouldn't, I'd just make sure there are enough interesting things around my planned tree to use those last points if I ever get them.

Roger.

Well, for the moment i'll just play and get used to the game flow. I suppose i'll have to stick with a few main nodes and adapt over time. Otherwise i'll reroll

[Dezerte]

I need to check what's the real difference between skeletons and zombies - especially if skeletons have life or are just time limited.

EDIT: does a setup exist to make minions cast other abilities with the correct support gems? I found that cast on crit doesn't work, i suppose also other setups won't work.

There's this old document I had in my favorites, it might not be up-to-date any longer but should give some rough idea of their differences. Minion gems can only be supported by support gems, or have them be cast from 'On Hit' effects (e.g. you can have summon skeletons be cast whenever you crit).

[Coldkil]

There's this old document I had in my favorites, it might not be up-to-date any longer but should give some rough idea of their differences. Minion gems can only be supported by support gems, or have them be cast from 'On Hit' effects (e.g. you can have summon skeletons be cast whenever you crit).

Thanks. So basically the standard "skills cannot proc other skills" applies.

[Lysah]

Skeletons are very slow and very weak, their AI is also pretty poor. They are mostly used as a distraction, a favorite of years past is to link them to spell totem to keep bosses busy hitting stuff that's not you. Zombies are actual meatshields, they are persistent, have a lot of health, built in resistances, and can be easily linked to gems like fortify and minion life to make them even tankier, allowing you to usually forget about them entirely as they distract mobs for you. If you want to do damage with minion nodes, raging spirits and spectres are pretty much your only options. Dominating blow is a thing, but requires a pretty specific build. When it comes to spectres, you mostly want to pick a high damage spell caster and then help it out as much as possible.

For example, my summoner build used elemental equilibrium and fully buffed curses to reduce enemy fire resistance by 100+. I then used flame sentinels or incinerators for damage and they pretty much one shot everything up to tier 14 maps.

[Coldkil]

Skeletons are very slow and very weak, their AI is also pretty poor. They are mostly used as a distraction, a favorite of years past is to link them to spell totem to keep bosses busy hitting stuff that's not you. Zombies are actual meatshields, they are persistent, have a lot of health, built in resistances, and can be easily linked to gems like fortify and minion life to make them even tankier, allowing you to usually forget about them entirely as they distract mobs for you. If you want to do damage with minion nodes, raging spirits and spectres are pretty much your only options. Dominating blow is a thing, but requires a pretty specific build. When it comes to spectres, you mostly want to pick a high damage spell caster and then help it out as much as possible.

For example, my summoner build used elemental equilibrium and fully buffed curses to reduce enemy fire resistance by 100+. I then used flame sentinels or incinerators for damage and they pretty much one shot everything up to tier 14 maps.

Thanks again i think i'll be using zombies now and dabble later with other skills. Atm my main attack is frostbolt, so i'm pretty confident with zombies as meatshields and me casting other things.

I'll check spectres - they are basically bringing on your side the monsters in game, amirite? Also need to check how summon armor/weapon work and if they're remotely useful.

[Lysah]

Yeah, specters are resurrected with the same stats and AI of the monsters you kill, so monsters that seem weak will make weak spectres, and tougher monsters make tougher spectres. Some aren't as obvious, like flame sentinels always feel like they do zero damage to players, but have great damage as spectres. Some are much more obvious, like evangelists. There are a few good melee mobs, like cleave bears and giant skeletons, but you are bound to clear slower with melee versus ranged mobs if that matters to you.

Animate weapon is good but it is timed, so you want to get the 6 skill duration nodes on the tree for sure. It also costs a massive amount of mana to spam, and you have to continue to find weapons as you clear, so you need to move fast and not waste time before your weapons expire. Guardian is permanent, even between logouts, and copies the gear you summon it from. It's generally weak by itself damage wise, but it can be insanely tanky, and you can use unique items for interest effects. I also used a guardian in my build, with Dying Breath (18% curse effectiveness for me, 18% damage for army) and Leer Cast (15% increased damage for the army), a pretty popular combo for summoners.

[Coldkil]

Ok, so a couple of new options are unlocked. I was specifically interested in the guardian, nice to hear it can be tanky, because losing it if it dies could be heartbreaking XD

[Bugg]

any rumors for an in-game AH / trading option?

[Lysah]

Ok, so a couple of new options are unlocked. I was specifically interested in the guardian, nice to hear it can be tanky, because losing it if it dies could be heartbreaking XD

One thing you will for sure want to look for is a helmet with +1/2 to minion skill gems. Levels matter a lot to animate guardian and zombies, giving them like 10% increased health per gem level, so +2 gem levels will go a long way to keeping them alive. My usual setup is zombie+fortify+minion life+guardian in a +2 minion gems hat. I also wouldn't necessarily expect to keep a guardian alive at all until high level, though I haven't really tried one at low level before. The damage:life ratio that monsters deal out is a lot more punishing for minions the lower level you are. When you have 1200 health and zombies have 800 health they die REAL fast, when you have 4000 health and zombies have 12000 health they are fairly immortal.

I do love summoners and think they are great, especially for newer players, but sadly their gems aren't designed to be very strong until like merciless at the earliest.

[Coldkil]

One thing you will for sure want to look for is a helmet with +1/2 to minion skill gems. Levels matter a lot to animate guardian and zombies, giving them like 10% increased health per gem level, so +2 gem levels will go a long way to keeping them alive. My usual setup is zombie+fortify+minion life+guardian in a +2 minion gems hat. I also wouldn't necessarily expect to keep a guardian alive at all until high level, though I haven't really tried one at low level before. The damage:life ratio that monsters deal out is a lot more punishing for minions the lower level you are. When you have 1200 health and zombies have 800 health they die REAL fast, when you have 4000 health and zombies have 12000 health they are fairly immortal.

I do love summoners and think they are great, especially for newer players, but sadly their gems aren't designed to be very strong until like merciless at the earliest.

I dabbled a little more - it seems, at least for me, that minions are best used as meatshields while you nuke other people. So my idea is to have zombies around, maybe the frost golem, using frostbolt as main nuke (need to check what to add to it) and the cold aura since i have additional plans for it.

That's the main reason why i've pursued these cold damage nodes.

[Vespian]

One thing you will for sure want to look for is a helmet with +1/2 to minion skill gems. Levels matter a lot to animate guardian and zombies, giving them like 10% increased health per gem level, so +2 gem levels will go a long way to keeping them alive. My usual setup is zombie+fortify+minion life+guardian in a +2 minion gems hat. I also wouldn't necessarily expect to keep a guardian alive at all until high level, though I haven't really tried one at low level before. The damage:life ratio that monsters deal out is a lot more punishing for minions the lower level you are. When you have 1200 health and zombies have 800 health they die REAL fast, when you have 4000 health and zombies have 12000 health they are fairly immortal.

I do love summoners and think they are great, especially for newer players, but sadly their gems aren't designed to be very strong until like merciless at the earliest.

My current secondary character is a summoner as well. Using this build.

I've not yet bothered with Ascendancy, but I'm reading that I should.

I'm running around with Tabula Rasa, which currently has:
- Raging Spirit
- Zombies
- Summon Damage
- (to be replaced, probably with Faster Casting) Lightning damage
- (to be replaced ) Crit chance
- Melee Splash

a 3-slot wand with:
- Totem Support
- Raging Spirits
- Faster Casting

Barely any slots in my other gear yet, so they vary too much. Since I'm only lvl 36 right now, I don't have access to a lot of slots yet, but ultimately I want to separate the Zombies from the Tabula Rasa into a setup much like yours, with a 4-slot helmet. I'll then want to mess around with the Raging spirits:

4 slot combo:
Totem support > Raging spirits > Faster Casting > duration

6 slot combo:
Raging spirits > Multistrike > Melee Splash > Summon Damage > Faster Casting > Duration

Edit; Some choices have been made under the assumption that I can always correct course with point resets.
EDit2: Question: Does Spell Echo work with Raging Spirits?
Edit3: Does Force Shaper apply to summons? (Guessing not).