1.3 Bloodlines 2H Ground Slam

Hi, this isn't going to be a detailed guide, but I wanted to briefly share the Ground Slam build I have been running in Bloodlines on my latest character. It has been working really well for me, and I am currently at level 92. I've had a few questions from other Ground Slammers I've ran into so I figured I'd just make a short post I can just link to people. :)

91ish tree:



Bandits = Oak/(Oak/Krait)/Oak

Gear:



Links:

GS - Multistrike - MPhys - FA - AddFire - WED
Leap Slam - FA - BM - Enduring
Low Level CWDT - Enduring - Curse (I'm using Vuln) - AoE
High Level CWDT - Immortal - Molten Shell - Duration
Reduced Mana - Hatred - HoA - HoI/Purity of X/Nothing (Depending on mana situation)
Vaal Haste - Blood Rage - Vengeance (Spare slots)

Lots of changes can be made to the links to suit personal preference, such as curses, self cast cursing, changing cwdt setups, duration on Vaal Haste, etc. This is just my current setup, and it has been working well for me so far.

Dmg/Life
47k GS without Flasks and without using Conc Effect, 55k with Taste up
6.7k Life w/ Ming's + Belly, 7.2k with no Ming's and generic life ring, 6.55k with Carcass

Stuff to note:

30 Dex/Int Nodes and Diamond Skin are all available to be taken and dropped as needed when leveling and regearing.

Mana - BM Gem is unnecessary for a phys build, 1-2% mana leech on gear is all that's needed, which is easy to do with crafting/shopping.

Concentrated Effect - This obviously makes GS hit a lot harder, but I already feel comfortable with my damage and don't really like the reduced range for clear speed purposes and for kiting, etc. I also don't think reflect would be manageable without VP. One thing that can be considered is Conc Effect as 6L and dropping Added Fire for LL Gem, and taking VP.

Chest Options - Belly/Kaoms/Carcass/Good Rare are all totally fine. I went with Carcass for awhile because I liked the increased AoE and getting more range on my GS so that I can stand back a bit further. I recently picked up Ming's Heart, and switched to Belly to compensate for the hp loss.

Physical Mitigation - My armor is low because of 2H and unique chest with no IR, but investing in Endurance Charges + the high level IC and Molten shell, and a Granite + Taste has felt like more than enough physical mitigation. Before Taste of Hate, I was using a second Granite with Iron Skin. Worrying about high armor seems like a waste. You could rely on a single CWDT EC IC setup (and probably drop the extra charges) if you prefer, especially with Taste.

Auras - Hatred and Ash are musts, HoI doesn't really do much but a 40% cuts my mana so low that I can't always leech it back fast enough with so little buffer, so I am running HoI as another 25% for marginal benefit. It is a bit better than HoT even if I had the int for it, because HoI quality interacts with Hatred and Taste.

Unwavering - I didn't take US for a really long time because stun was mostly a non-issue with high Life. You can hold off on US for a long time, especially if you want to take advantage of a party member's Grace.

Phys Dmg Vs Attack Speed- I took Oak in Cruel over Krait (and prioritized Phys damage over AS on tree) because even though 8% Speed is probably better budgeted than the % Phys, raw Phys damage helps with leech and reaching stun threshold on mobs a bit easier. They are really close regardless, honestly comes down to preference imo.

Ground Slam - I can justify using this over Static/Cyclone because I think it's safer. It has built in range, and doesn't need VP to not be afraid of reflect. It also allows for preemptively stunning all incoming packs, plus reduced stun threshold. Basically, it has some utility to it, and is still a viable skill! All the decent 2H Mace skills can be used with this build and some minor gem/tree adjustments.

I will continue updating OP with my progess for my own personal use and for anyone curious.

bump for pretty g build

hey what are you using skill duration for ? ive never saw anyone take these nodes so have no idea what do they do ? like skill duration for vaal grace or smth?

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idrgz wrote:

hey what are you using skill duration for ? ive never saw anyone take these nodes so have no idea what do they do ? like skill duration for vaal grace or smth?

I didn't take Potency of Will or Exceptional Performance. Which nodes do you mean?

Update: Hit 90, Probably going to purchase Belly and Ming's.

Also Happy New Years PoE players :)

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idrgz wrote:

hey what are you using skill duration for ? ive never saw anyone take these nodes so have no idea what do they do ? like skill duration for vaal grace or smth?

I didn't take Potency of Will or Exceptional Performance. Which nodes do you mean?

Update: Hit 90, Probably going to purchase Belly and Ming's.

Also Happy New Years PoE players :)

lol dude i swear i saw skill duration nodes before :D maybe it was some other build lmao nvm :D im creating character for slamming now.

why are you droping carcass? problems with hp in maps? are the rest of the gear the same?

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idrgz wrote:

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idrgz wrote:

hey what are you using skill duration for ? ive never saw anyone take these nodes so have no idea what do they do ? like skill duration for vaal grace or smth?

I didn't take Potency of Will or Exceptional Performance. Which nodes do you mean?

Update: Hit 90, Probably going to purchase Belly and Ming's.

Also Happy New Years PoE players :)

lol dude i swear i saw skill duration nodes before :D maybe it was some other build lmao nvm :D im creating character for slamming now.

why are you droping carcass? problems with hp in maps? are the rest of the gear the same?

Haha no worries :D

I want to try out Ming's Heart + Blood Rage for more damage and leech and want to use Belly to help compensate for losing HP with Ming's. Carcass is working fine though, nothing wrong with it.

Updated gear with Ming's + Blood Rage :)

Love the insights, thanks for the thread! What are your feelings on the usefulness of life leech? I see you only have 1% on gear; do you focus most heavily on passive regen?

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Rysidion wrote:

Love the insights, thanks for the thread! What are your feelings on the usefulness of life leech? I see you only have 1% on gear; do you focus most heavily on passive regen?

Hey, if you look at Gems I am relying on Blood Rage for my leech. Leech is definitely nice to have, I had some on my other ring before Ming's + Blood Rage. You can also get a lot on amulet obviously, but good leech amys get really expensive.

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Rysidion wrote:

Love the insights, thanks for the thread! What are your feelings on the usefulness of life leech? I see you only have 1% on gear; do you focus most heavily on passive regen?

Hey, if you look at Gems I am relying on Blood Rage for my leech. Leech is definitely nice to have, I had some on my other ring before Ming's + Blood Rage. You can also get a lot on amulet obviously, but good leech amys get really expensive.

what about mana? any problems with mana? i see you only have 1% on gloves, and no mana potion, so i guess its ok?

also its not worth to get 20Q ground slam right? nothing of value there ?