[2.1] Nalaa's Phys Lightning arrow | 5L 30k dps

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Kuruptt wrote:

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yongsheng11 wrote:

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Kuruptt wrote:

Do you think this is the best build for rangers at the moment? Better then nguyin's build?

I honestly do, for softcore atleast. BUT his build is VERY good and i used it as a base along with Petrov's.

Awesome, thanks for the quick reply and awesome guide you made!


How does it fare in PvP? I am a big PvP fan.

Also how does this build compare to builds from other classes? Is there more efficient builds out there?

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Exerebus wrote:

With the latest patch, lightning arrow chance to shock was removed. does this change the effect of static blows?

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Elerion_ wrote:

Inspired by the comments above about BM rangers, I compiled some key stats for 3 builds:
1. Nalaa's BM ranger build, less 1 30int node to have 100 points spent
2. Petrov's "tanky shock" BM ranger build
3. Tyr's elemental shadow, with 10 added points to have 100 points spent (Divine Toughness, Static Blows, some hp nodes)

Here's the summary:

(Also, both ranger builds have Iron Reflexes - I forgot to include that in the table above)

Note that the theoretical DPS is based on some simple assumptions, which may not match the game's calculations.

Some observations about defense:
- The ranger builds have 50-60% more HP than the shadow build.
- All builds have comparable resistances
- The ranger builds can stack armor higher by using pure evasion armor, thanks to 86% Evasion % and Iron Reflexes
- The ranger builds can't be stunned
- The shadow build can get high Energy Shield, but I feel that Energy Shield is fundamentally broken in that it becomes useless in a sustained damage scenario
- With life leech as core, the ranger builds can stand up to sustained damage far longer
- Both rangers have, or have ready access to, the very sexy +5% maximum elemental resist node
- The rangers have no need for mana flasks, leaving room for more defensive flasks (Granites, Resists), and with stacked armor they can get incredible returns from running high % armor boost flasks

Some observations about offense:
- All builds have comparable single target damage
- The shadow build has noticeably higher aoe lightning damage
- The ranger builds can't crit, but can't miss. My gut feeling is that the direct dps effect of this is relatively neutral, so I haven't included it in the calculations, but the reduced freeze/shock procs could hurt dps noticably, especially in AOE scenarios. The ranger builds can alternatively spec out of this keystone, but they lack the +110% crit chance of the shadow.
- The shadow has Inner Focus and can run one more aura (Anger). These are not included in the calculations, and will boost the shadow's damage further.
- The rangers are forced to run life leech or life on hit gems to survive Blood Magic. This reduces potential damage output significantly.
- Note that my assumptions for Iron Grip are very harsh. I'm assuming it only applies to final output physical damage (not before the split to elemental in Ice Shot / LA), and that only 10% of the damage is physical. More favorable assumptions for Iron Grip can boost Nalaa's build significantly.
- Nalaa's build has two unpicked +10% elemental weapon nodes ready for picking. This could boost DPS significantly, at the cost of some HP or other stats.


In conclusion:
I find these numbers hard to ignore. The defensive advantages of the rangers (massive HP, massive armor) seem to outweigh the offensive advantages of the shadow. While the Shadow could pick up another +44% Life by moving 5 nodes around, going higher is very hard, the build is spread so thin that doing so early would require dropping some of the other core nodes, sacrificing the other advantages the build has.
Finally, the ranger builds are much "tighter". The shadow build has "some" use of most stats, but few of them are particularly powerful (aside from ele damage). The ranger build makes some stats obsolete, but also more stats that become attractive to stack. While this will make mid-level gearing harder, it will probably increase the max level potential.

I think I might reroll ranger. Which fucking sucks.

(Final note: Petrov's ranger build could just as well be a Marauder. Tyr may be well ahead of us here :) )