Returning player: how much dps should I have for end game? Tips on 2h crit ele build (or similar)?

I used to play this game quite a lot and just returned last week, but I feel like the 2 years that I stopped had the most significant changes lol, as opposed to the first two years I played this game. I want to be able to do end-game like I used to, and I still have a good idea of how to make a build but I dont have any experience in the amount of damage I need along with survivability to reach end game.

So I guess first question,

1) How much dps do I need to comfortably do end game, and maybe not required to "speed" the most difficult stuff I;'m hearing like uber lab or atziri etc, but just be able to do them.


My current plan

I'm currently messing around with Path of Building for a Hegemony'e Era (the unique staff) build I really want to try, with templar to also scale the ele converted from the physical damage and also cuz he's near the staff crit nodes. I didn't put the best in slot gear for the plan but pretty decent gear, and it's only sitting at ~450k TOTAL dps. Not the average dps number but the total dps below it.

I don't know the optimal set up for auras and such but since with inqusitor I can negate the need of penetrating ele resist, I thought I would't need a resist penetration support or curse / aura (with blasphemy, as someone has fortunately told me about since my return), so I have hatred and herald of ash on. Maybe this can be more optimal, along with my links which are currently:

Wild Strike - Physical to Lightning - Multistrike - Melee Physical - Elemental Damage with Attacks - Increased Critical Strikes

2)Is there a better set up then above or another skill for crit staff melee build? I just really want to try wild strike currently but I'm open to other skills too, just maybe not ground slam or infernal blow as I played those too much in the past lol.


My Path of Building plan with tree and dps: https://pastebin.com/vA8F41HP.


Any help on this matter would be greatly appreciated, along with any other tips. Thanks so much I love this community!

You don't need phys to lightning, as Wild Strike already converts 100% of your phys to an element. Increased Critical Multiplier will almost surely be more damage.

You're right about not needing penetration.

Consider using Ancestral Call support instead of Elemental Damage with Weapons for clearing the main part of maps, then swapping in WED for bosses. 450k is more than enough damage.

You will steamroll through maps tier 1-10, how you fare beyond that is more about your defenses. Mind over Matter is pretty good, although with only 25% of your mana left open, maybe not the best for you unless you have a way to leech mana (which you probably won't as a Templar). Anyways good luck, I can't imagine you're too far off track to fix anything that you feel is lacking by the time you get to wherever your progression takes you.

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innervation wrote:

You don't need phys to lightning, as Wild Strike already converts 100% of your phys to an element. Increased Critical Multiplier will almost surely be more damage.

You're right about not needing penetration.

Consider using Ancestral Call support instead of Elemental Damage with Weapons for clearing the main part of maps, then swapping in WED for bosses. 450k is more than enough damage.

You will steamroll through maps tier 1-10, how you fare beyond that is more about your defenses. Mind over Matter is pretty good, although with only 25% of your mana left open, maybe not the best for you unless you have a way to leech mana (which you probably won't as a Templar). Anyways good luck, I can't imagine you're too far off track to fix anything that you feel is lacking by the time you get to wherever your progression takes you.

Thank you for the answer! Yeah I realised that, as I was originally going for static strike etc I didn't think to remove it after. I found elemental focus also gives a lot a of damage, and with inquisitor it seems I dont have the ailments anyway.

Is ancestral call + multistrike needed for aoe? Or can I replace multistrike with ancestral call? And are the auras optimal?

Does mind over matter not starve you on mana even if you have leech? It sounds like enemy hits do a lore than your mana numbers are.. I mean unless there is instant life leech like in days of old and ur fighting really easy stuff ur health doesn't stay full even with all that standard LL and regen, how can the mana stay full with some minor mana leech when its being depleted by enemy hits?

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innervation wrote:

Consider using Ancestral Call support

I tried Ancestral Call with Wild Strike - it did not attack adjacent targets. Attacks, and effects therefrom, are still originating with the character and no where else (unlike with FB or Molten Strike).

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BlaqWolf wrote:

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innervation wrote:

Consider using Ancestral Call support

I tried Ancestral Call with Wild Strike - it did not attack adjacent targets. Attacks, and effects therefrom, are still originating with the character and no where else (unlike with FB or Molten Strike).

It does work I tried it, I can see two red ancestors appear and strike at the same time.

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ZzeDarKNesS wrote:

I mean unless there is instant life leech like in days of old

Just to see how things worked I started a duelist and went full leech with tons of health.

the new Vaal Pact may not be 'instant' but it's damn near. Doubling up the leech, with the south mana/leech wheel and the Hematophagy wheel returns a massive amount of health. Then you toss in Endless Hunger from slayer without any further investment it becomes very hard to kill you - it takes something doing twice your life in one hit (after mitigation) to punch through your leech.

And if you're really imaginative with the skill tree you can leave out Vaal Pact, work out 10% health regen, *and* throw in all of that leech to double dip the healing in fights. Tho I think the new VP still has a leg up against that approach.

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BlaqWolf wrote:

"

ZzeDarKNesS wrote:

I mean unless there is instant life leech like in days of old

Just to see how things worked I started a duelist and went full leech with tons of health.

the new Vaal Pact may not be 'instant' but it's damn near. Doubling up the leech, with the south mana/leech wheel and the Hematophagy wheel returns a massive amount of health. Then you toss in Endless Hunger from slayer without any further investment it becomes very hard to kill you - it takes something doing twice your life in one hit (after mitigation) to punch through your leech.

And if you're really imaginative with the skill tree you can leave out Vaal Pact, work out 10% health regen, *and* throw in all of that leech to double dip the healing in fights. Tho I think the new VP still has a leg up against that approach.

Sounds good, the way I planned my tree so far I'm right there to pick up vaal pact if I want to. But I'm templar, do you think it's still worth it?

Hello,

just a friendly reminder, you can't kill atziri with wild strike, you will kill yourself with the reflect from the mirror replica everytime your wild strike proc the lightning hit.

other than that, wild strike has been amazing for me so far, especially with ancestral call. i'll make a guide when i down the shaper with it.

for shaper you need something like 400K shaper DPS on POB to be quite confortable, 1M shaper DPS is usually good enought for reliable deathless runs. uber atziri is a no go for wild strike too, unless you swap wild strike for something that can target a single enemy. uberlab is cheese cake once you get close to 100k dps.