Enki's Arc Witch Memorial Page

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ScaryAtheist wrote:

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Ratsneve wrote:

I haven't done any trading but it seems SSF is limiting and unnecessary. SSF or not doesn't change what you might find and pick up does it? Also, SSF doesn't mean crafting won't be essential at some point will it?

Crafting is absolutely essential in SSF. It's the only surefire way to get halfway decent gear for your build, you can't rely on items dropping with the right mods once you hit maps, the variance is too high.

It's a complicated game and the console releases have additional performance and trade issues with the much lower player base that make it even worse. It should never have been released to console, it just looks like a greedy move to sell more MTX.

It will be interesting to see how the console game might evolve differently or not? I certainly am stuck there.

There is no "built into the game mechanics" advantage to playing SSF or not is there?

I've just started a new Legion League (default--non-SSF) witch. Contrary to what I was trying to "bend" Enki's build to I'm giving up on those pure intelligence wand only desires and Bluitch will be wearing and using whatever. I will be following this build as close as I can but if and when I question or complain maybe about something in the build you guys can deal with it. Just don't be silent--push me in some direction please.

Q: Playing the league games make various differences in Acts 1-10, but the endgame maps and Atlas never change? Are there "things" that can go wrong with a character in the Endgames that force one to play a whole new different character from scratch again in order to succeed correctly in the Endgames?

"3.8 Update: No Elementalist rework is bad, Patchnotes now decide about this builds future.
If I decide to continue, i'd appreciate your opinion on a potential Leveling Section change!"

I do not understand, "No Elementalist rework is bad" or "Patchnotes now decide". Oh, maybe I get it? You were hoping GGG would rework the Elementalist and didn't and GGG's patch notes will detail where that leaves you?

Well, there goes 3 respecs if I have to switch from spell damage to cast speed. :) It is complicated because I would like to pick up both strings and Energy Shield on the other path out too. On second or multiple thoughts I think I'll just strike out on my own build and see how bad it all looks when [3.8] starts. You have changes to make and or abandoning the build--it never gets worse when you can just start over again. We'll all get the 1-time respec anyway.

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Ratsneve wrote:

I'm giving up on those pure intelligence wand only desires and Bluitch will be wearing and using whatever.

You can use wands... I am using Profane Wand, as you can see in my profile, for the build and having tested it out against the end-game encounters I can say it is viable. And again majority of the pieces can end up being int-heavy. The only one that likely will not be "caster" themed would be your boots and unique chest Inpulsa.

@Ratsneve: SSF has no increased droprate or other benefits, it's just for the added challenging aspect. You have to approach the game in a completely different way than you'd do in a trade league, which includes starting with a relatively gear-independent build and planning its passive tree to be flexible enough to make up for potential gear deficiencies. And that's an aspect i've always tried to design this build around, sometimes more, sometimes less successfully. The current version is pretty good in that regard, but still requires you to plan ahead about things you just can't know yet as an absolute new player. That's why i'd recommend trade leagues to start out, even withe the horrible market situation on consoles you'd have an easier time with your first endgame experience.

To clarify my note about 3.8: Elementalist is one of the worst Ascendancies currently. It's not bad in itself, but bad compared to all other Ascendancies and its only identity right now is for golem builds, which is honestly kind of meh for what is supposed to be the master of the elements. And to make it worse, GGG even nerfed Elementalist in 3.7 by lowering Beacon of Ruins base shock value from 20% to 15% and removing the proliferation (status ailment spreading), without giving anything in return.

Arc has also been butchered in 3.6, the chain length (= distance it can choose targets within to chain to) got halved which pretty much completely killed this skills identity. And that came only a few months after Arc has been buffed to finally be an all around good skill, after years of being too weak on its own for the majority of endgame content.

To keep the tradition going, I wouldn't be surprised if dodge gets nerfed this patch and with that killing off the last reliable defense for builds that get no defense from their Ascendancy, such as Elementalist. And if that should happen without any reliable alternative turning up, then this build is done for good.

New notable passive next league that allows an additional golem...depending on placement, perhaps could be utilized in this build to run all 3 (elemental) golems for additional damage from buffs? We'll have to see.

I accidentally took 3 spell damage nodes instead of 3 cast speed nodes. Why not keep them and take the 3 energy shields too. If I need them later on take 3+ respecs then?

I'm using the Orb of Storms but don't understand the "attack without moving"? This may not be a problem for the PS4?

I read a Reddit about disabling auto-level for Arcane Surge. I think the gem is Level 4 now but never level 1 unless the gem level is described somewhere else? There isn't anything critical about Level 1?

To gain arcane surge, in level 1 you only need to use 15mana vs in lvl4 19mana.
You basically only need to think how many cast you need to gain arcane surge. You should be fine until lvl6. Anything above that, you need to be sure to have enough mana cost to proc arcane surge.

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Ratsneve wrote:

I accidentally took 3 spell damage nodes instead of 3 cast speed nodes. Why not keep them and take the 3 energy shields too. If I need them later on take 3+ respecs then?

Cast speed is more important than the flat spell damage. Energy shield is useless for this build, you want flat life & mana.

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ScaryAtheist wrote:

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Ratsneve wrote:

I accidentally took 3 spell damage nodes instead of 3 cast speed nodes. Why not keep them and take the 3 energy shields too. If I need them later on take 3+ respecs then?

Cast speed is more important than the flat spell damage. Energy shield is useless for this build, you want flat life & mana.

Principally a Witch is going to have more INT then anything else or it is not a witch? I want my Bluitch in slippers and robes. No doubt I can learn a lot from Enki and other builds but it is complicated.
If I backoff on an Energy Shield should I just ignore a shield all together and use a second wand or sceptre?
Should I be building STR and DEX up equally with INT still higher?
It was suggested I could stick with wands only but doesn't that preclude elemental damage? And then I am deviating off Enki's build for sure?

There is too much basics I don't understand. And the PS4 problem of trading I have heard about but don't understand which I don't even want to do from my liking SSF and avoiding crafting. Lots of lessons to try learning and maybe some great discoveries?

I'm going to keep an eye out for this build but feel a great need to build a blue witch as far as I can and then respec if I can or start over and hope to have learned why? There will always be a build to copy--won't there. I probably should stick with the PS4 forum though and not here? My goal is to end up with one character I can explore and build on through all the endgame maps/Atlas and/or understand why that isn't possible. At some point I get my fill of PoE and can let it go. PoE is in front of many other genres I've played in the past and I cannot play different ones at the same time.

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ScaryAtheist wrote:

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Ratsneve wrote:

I accidentally took 3 spell damage nodes instead of 3 cast speed nodes. Why not keep them and take the 3 energy shields too. If I need them later on take 3+ respecs then?

Cast speed is more important than the flat spell damage. Energy shield is useless for this build, you want flat life & mana.

Why? And thank you much for explaining.