Help with Totem Builds and Mid/Top Tier Maps

Hello,

I am still new to PoE and I am struggling with the T6+ maps. I like to play totem builds but they seem to cap out in their 70s.

Is there a totem build that is not heavily focused on items, scales up nicely, and can kill the Shaper?
(I kinda suck at item management/development and crafting seems _really_ random)

I tried this build:
https://www.pathofexile.com/forum/view-thread/1990431

My character:
https://www.pathofexile.com/account/view-profile/Drolem42/characters?characterName=Zoheret

She has okay damage but, wow, is she fragile. She dies instantly on just about any critical hit from a blue mob or higher.

I also tried:
https://www.pathofexile.com/forum/view-thread/1904823

My character:
https://www.pathofexile.com/account/view-profile/Drolem42/characters?characterName=Zaavan

He seems a little more hearty but his damage seem to be max-ed out. (It is hard to tell really because DPS it not listed anywhere)

Can either of these builds be fixed/saved/re-worked to be viable or is there a better totem build that I should try?

Thanks for the help!

Totem builds dont cap out at 70s. Spells in PoE in general are very powerful. Your issue is very likely being on a 4L, you should get a 5L at the very least. In terms of survivability, totems are "kiting" builds (many builds are). You cant tank hits... so, don't get hit. Put down your totems and run, put down your totems and run.

Life on gear is mandatory. Your character uses Goldrim (no life), Saffels Frame (no life), Lioneye Paws (no life), your amulet has no life, and two Kikizaru rings (no life). You need more life on your gear. Your Scion has 2973 life and 1163 unreserved mana, which is not enough. If a monster looks at you the wrong way, your Scion will fall over and die. Monster damage in PoE is insane.

You need more life, you need to get a 5L chest, and you need to avoid being hit.

The first thing I'm noticing are real shitty life rolls on your gear. If you're gonna do a mantle + double Kikazaru, you need some serious life on your other gear. The Lioneye's is great for that, though not perfect.

I'm not surprised the chief is doing better. RF totems are a lot easier to play than Dark Pact totems, and his gear is MUCH better - though still poor - and his build is even more superior.

The scion:
Fill out her build and jewels. She's level 80 with a L67 build. A Spire of Stone wouldn't go amiss; the chief needs it even less with RF totems that continue to deal damage even when they're stunned.


This tree fills the Scion out with Life nodes to level 84 (86 if you helped a bandit) without touching any of your crit and totem stuff except taking one minor AoE node away.

It gets rid of MoM, since you're not geared for it, and replaces it with Blood Magic and gets you up to +249% life before jewels. You'll need an Uber Lab to get the Templar start point in addition to your two ascendancies.


Now, replace your hat, shield, amulet and boots with rare gear with high life rolls (let's say 90+ for hat and shield, 75+ for the others).

Use all your sockets, and get 4L wherever you can, then focus on getting a 5L and eventually a 6L soul mantle. If you're rich and want to go all out, follow with a Tukohama shield for the 4th totem.




The mara:
Get Blood Magic on him too, it's very good Quality of Life when you don't really need to run auras (and your totems are immune to fire anyway).



This tree swaps Celestial Judgment (which gives you a pitiful damage increase and the Fire pen doesn't help at all) for Blood Magic, and some unnecessary stuff for a bit more regeneration with Sanctity.

Gear-wise, the sceptre is not bad, but a Doryani's is better. The shield is excellent, but a Tukohama's is better, especially once you're already going Blood Magic.
You want a Self-Flagellation on the Mara as well, and make sure your Spire of Stone is in the best location. For the rare jewels, Totem Life gives you more damage from RF than Totem Damage.

The rest of your gear also has very low life rolls: the amulet, boots and gloves I'm seeing are terrible. Get ones with 75+ life in all cases if you can, without compromising your elemental resistances of course.

Also improve your gem links similar to the scion, but wearing a sceptre allows you to combine the functionalities of the movement skill and the fortify trigger by using Leap Slam.