I have a significant issue with strong boxes.

That's really all you need. Works so well!

may try decoy totem that seems like interesting idea

Do you guys clean up your PCs, defrag, etc?

In all seriousness, there are a few ways to help with strongbox encounters:

Using cold snap + Trap + Multitrap (+Coldpen) and laying down two rows of traps by the box will freeze stuff, or chill at the very least. Obviously much less effective if you're not a spellcaster, but still fairly strong early/mid-game.
Decoy totem is great for distracting enemies (never underestimate the Decoy totem, it will distract even Atziri's flameblasts from you!). If you can spare the gem slots, sticking elemental res on it will make it tankier.
Use CWDT + IC, and rev up some endurance charges prior to opening it.

Open the strongbox while moving (e.g. click on it while you're a small distance away, and click away from it the moment you open it but before the mobs start spawning).
Use a Quartz flask if you can carry one around. Those are also heavily underestimated. If you say, "But I don't want to use up a flask slot with a Quartz flask!" then use Forbidden Taste, it'll save your butt in two different ways.
Use a Granite flask of Iron Skin (or a Jade of Reflexes, if that's your thing), it'll cut down on the initial burst damage.
If you're not a walker, use Lightning Warp or Smoke Mine to immediately teleport yourself out as soon as you open the box.

Additionally, for detonate dead, try using flesh/bone offering to dispose of bodies. It destroys 9 bodies per cast, which is pretty darn good for one gem slot.


Last time I ever ripped to a strongbox (believe me, it's very rare) was a detonate dead box next to a few dozen bodies on the ground. Didn't destroy the bodies, didn't have a granite/quartz flask on me, my fire res wasn't capped (I was leveling), got stuck by the spawning mobs, and boom. All the classic mistakes bundled into one massive failure.

also have a little screen freezing when opening some boxes. most of the time it is when the box comes with a rogue exile.

I wondering what your ping is like, if you are running a vpn, or not using the deterministic feature. My machine is older and only midgrade and I don't have any issue. Use F1 to see your activity and tell us ( or screen shot ) what kind of numbers you're seeing.

I don't like it either. I always have to leapslam right after clicking a box to (hopefully) save myself from the brief lag.

In addition to all the good advice above, if you use an energy shield build with decent max ES, activating a Vaal Discipline-Increased Duration right before opening will significantly aid your survival in those critical seconds when everything seems frozen.

You could always try using a chance orb on it instead:



Also: Irony. using a chance orb on a strongbox, and it drops the item you wanted to chance as unique.

On Topic:

Have as many distractions as possible going. Totems and minions are good for that.

Theres also plenty of attack/movement skills like flame dash, whirling blades, lightning teleport smoke mine etc.

I do freeze up for about a second or so, so I pop jade + quicksilver flask to move away as fast as possible. Quartz + quicksilver would be ideal, potentially also have a "cast when damage taken" defensive skill, maybe linked to decoy totem or something.

You guys all give terrible suggestions. The only true counter against strongboxes which freeze up your screen is Lightning Warp.

Smoke Mine : Your screen froze. When are you going to activate the mine?
Leap Slam/Whirling Blades/Flame Dash : Same as above.

Lightning Warp will warp you away regardless of what happens as long as you type /oos and warp to a proper spot beforehand. If you die after that well too bad, but it's way more powerful than other skills which cannot activate unless you do so manually.

Though I suppose Smoke Mine + (Detonate Mines + Trap and maybe multitrap) will be the safest of them all.


As for distractions/defenses:
CWDT + Arctic Breathe + Increased Duration + GMP
Arctic Armour (deactivate once safe)
Decoy Totem
Zombies + Spectres with Minion Life/Fortify
Skele Totems/Mirror Arrow Totems (Blink Arrow totems are weird)
Enfeeble/Temporal Chains, auto-cast or manual cast
CWDT + Immortal Call (last line of defense) or CWS + Discharge (last hope)
Blinding and Fleeing Totems.

Build-specific defenses:
-Freezing/Crit Cold-
Cold Snap Traps
Ice Nova CWS
Freeze Mine + Smoke Mine
Ice Nova Totem

-Stunning-
Vengeance + Stun + Endurance Charge on Stun + Melee Physic Damage


Flasks you SHOULD have:
Anti-Burn (not as important as the other two)
Anti-Bleed (die while running)
Anti-Freeze (can't run. Or defend)

Flasks useful to have:
Quartz (useful against Desync if lockstep sucks for you).
Quicksilver with one of the anti-fleeing mods.

Are we talking about freezing up or damage spikes? Or damage spike because of freezing up? It's probably different for you high level peeps (I'm only 38) but I'm running PoE on a POS laptop that barely runs the game at all and I haven't had a big problem with boxes although I have had a couple "aww shit" moments and one RIP back when I had no idea what I was doing (ok so I still have no idea what I'm doing). I just toss down my three fire traps, my decoy totem and i always have my zombies with me. I just click the box and run with my hands up in the air like a scared little girl to a safe distance. I spose the fire traps going off would add to the lag but they kill quite a few of the nasties.

Good luck and happy hunting.