[3.3] Cleverist's Champion Sunderer - League Starter to Uber Elder - 3+mil Shaper DPS - Super Fast



Greetings Exiles!

This is my first guide and it is still a work in progress so bear with me.

I've been running a Sunder build for three leagues now and I just can't get past the versatility and clear speed. During Harbinger and Abyss I was running a modified version of Mathil's Gladiator Sunderer but with the changes in 3.2 I swapped to a Champion. The new ascendancy allows us to drop Resolute Technique and swap to a critical damage build without the draw back of needing to stack accuracy.

This build has amazing clear speed and I have cleared all content. I cleared HOTGM and Uber Elder using the Aspect of the Cat version. It would still be doable using the Non-League Specific version just quite a lot harder and I probably don't have the skill (or stable enough internet connection - lag). If you want to farm Uber Elder then this build isn't for you. For me it was simply exciting that I could take a Sunder build to the very end game. I have a series of video's below including a Deathless Shaper run and an Uber Elder kill.

The play style of Sunder is extremely new player friendly and scales very well into the end game. Since your movement skill is leap slam, the high attack speed gives you a great amount of mobility. This allows for the build to sacrifice some survivability for extra damage but it can easily be adjusted to suit your personal preference. I don't mind the occasional death so the way my build is set up and my play style is not really supportive of a HC build so keep that in mind.

The damage of this build scales directly with your gear so the more you invest, the higher your dps will go. The non-league specific build I've linked below has a maximum Shaper dps of 2.6mil Sunder damage, plus the added damage from your totem. That said, if you are able to get your hands on a Farrul's Fur from Beastiary like I did you can have maximum frenzy and power changes all the time, giving 3.6mil Sunder dps and 1mil totem damage. This doesn't include the added damage from Vaal Lightning Trap. My gear is good but not necessarily best in slot so there is still room to grow if you really want to spend some serious exalts.

Pro's
1. Very High Clear Speed
2. High DPS
3. Great mobility
4. Can clear all content and run all maps except Phys Reflect
5. Reasonable survivability
6. No skill switching for bosses necessary
7. Good Uber Lab runner as a bonus
8. Really fun to play

Con's
1. Not a real face-tank build, you NEED to move
2. Not a "boss killer" like some builds but more than capable
3. Not very high life
4. You will die, I'm not going to lie

Current Incursion Build

Level 49

https://pastebin.com/06kQj2RZ

I'm leveling using Brightbeak so I have picked up the mace damage nodes near Resolute Technique sooner than in the builds below. I need them to balance out the low dps of Brightbeak. I have also picked up additional mana and life regen nodes near Vitality Void as well. I'll spec out of these later on.

I have been trying to get to at least 4-socket items so I can get my full gem contingent set up. Been going well so far. My dps is lower than last league because of Brightbeak but my speed and mobility is far higher. This means dodging boss hits is much easier.


Level 79

https://pastebin.com/eVJRWZ2n

Things are now moving along nicely as I expand my Atlas. I'm smashing through Tier 7-8 maps without too much concern for the mod rolls. I've just got my final Lab Trial so I'll be taking on Uber Lab shortly. I've changed the order of the Ascendancies to match what I have done this league.

Next step is save up for a Belly of the Beast!



How to Play

There really isn't much to playing a Sunder character but the general play style is as follows,

1. Leap Slam between packs to maintain fortify and re-slam occasionally to reapply fortify.
2. Drop your totem.
3. Sunder to your hearts content.
4. Try and remember to keep blood rage up which is easy with the clear speed of this build.

A tip for faster clear speed is using the Numlock Trick. Bind your "attack in place" key to a numpad key. Then while holding that key down, turn on numlock. Now when you leap slam you won't run between attacks at all.

For boss fights you can use Righteous Fire to trigger Adrenaline before you engage. During the fight you may need to use Frenzy to generate your charges. It adds a great amount of damage but after a certain point you won't need to bother because your dps will be more than enough as you can see in some of my videos.

End Game Map Clearing

Once you are adequately geared you can replace your Main Hand Weapon with a Brightbreak for super fast clear speed. I also replace Hatred with Haste for the added speed. I have no issue clearing any T16 map with this set up as you can see in my videos.


Uber Lab

This build does really well in Uber Lab by replacing Arctic Armour (or Herald of Fire) with Vitality. During Beastiary I cleared my 100 Uber Lab runs using Brightbreak as stated above. The runs were generally 5-12 minutes depending on the lab layout.


Uber Elder

To kill Uber Elder you will need to change your set up slightly.

Get a pair of slotting Kaom's Roots.



The slow during the fight severely limits your mobility which simply results in death. To accommodate Kaom's simply remove the Immortal Call set up. Replace Hatred with Purity of Ice and run Vitality. You don't need the dps and the survivability makes the fight more forgiving. A taste of hate flask also helps to take the edge off of the cold damage.



Leveling

Passive Tree - Level 20


Passive Tree - Level 40


Passive Tree - Level 60


Passive Tree - Level 80


Useful Uniques





My Build Level 94


Passive Tree

Non-League Specific Version - lvl 94
https://pastebin.com/T7fhGWF7

Aspect of the Cat Version - lvl 94
https://pastebin.com/E2AknzvY

Non-League Specific Version - lvl 100
https://pastebin.com/f6tqECW4


My Gear

Non-League Specific


Depending on the situation I sometimes swap the following gems.

Remove Options - Frenzy, Arctic Armour, Hatred
Add Options - Vaal Lightning Trap, Herald of Fire, Haste, Vitality

Max Clear Speed


Replace your Main Hand Weapon with a Brightbeak and replace Hatred with Haste.

Beastiary/Standard Only


The added damage from this chest is insane. Being able to have max charges all the time boosted my dps to around 3.5mil Shaper dps. I will miss it a lot in the future leagues.


Flasks

Standard Set Up


Optional

Use for an extra starting boost of dps on bosses without adds


Slot for maps with curses, in particular Temp Chains


Helpful for Uber Elder



Gems


Final set up
Sunder(12) - Ruthless(1) - Melee Physical(18) - Concentrated Effect(18) - Multistrike(38) - Damage on Full Life(18)
Leap Slam(10) - Blood Magic(31) - Fortify(31) - Faster Attacks(18)
CWDT(38) - Immortal Call(34) - Enfeeble (24) - Increased Duration(31)
Ancestral Warchief(28) - Maim(8) - Concentrated Effect(18) - Melee Physical Damage(18)
Frenzy(16) - Arctic Armour(16) - Righteous Fire(16)
Blood Rage(16) - Hatred(24) - Vaal Haste(24)

Leveling gems
Herald of Ash (16)
Lightning Golem (34)

Level you can use gem is in brackets.

Notes
- While leveling use Herald of Fire(16) instead of Arctic Armour and use Lightning Golem instead of RF.
- Don't slot Multistrike until you have some additional attack speed otherwise it feels really slow.
- Enfeeble can be replaced with any curse of your choosing.
- Righteous Fire isn't needed until you complete Cruel Lab but even then I don't really use it until end game.



End Game Videos

T15 Sunken City

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IbP3o1yJ4Hg
*Using Aspect of the Cat and Farrul's Fur during this run

T15 Bog - using Brightbeak

Maze of the Minotaur Video


Deathless Shaper

T16 Elder Guardian Enslaver - using Brightbeak

T16 Elder Guardian Purifier - using Brightbeak

Uber Elder Kill - Cat Version



Gear Objectives

Gearing for this build is pretty standard and very easy due to having no need for accuracy. You will want to stack as much Life and Resists as possible however you also want to get Flat Phys Damage on every available piece of gear. You will need 110 Intelligence so try and get what you can on gear and make up for the rest with jewels. I never focused on stacking Crit but just picked it up where I could.

I have provided a quick breakdown on what to look for on each item slot below.

Chest
Belly of the Beast or Farrul's Fur

For Rare Chest

1. Life
2. Resists

Belly of the Beast is a solid option here and what I used until I got a Farrul's Fur. Alternatively you could use a good rare chest with high life and resists.

Helm
Unique Helm - Abyssus

For Rare Helm

1. Life
2. Resist
3. Intelligence
4. Enchant - Sunder (40% DMG or 15% IAS)

I opt to run Abyssus due to the massive amount of DPS it provides. Alternatively, Rat's Nest or Starkonja are solid unique options, or a good rare helm.

Boots
Rare Boots

1. Life
2. Resists - LOTS
3. Intelligence
4. Enchant - 16% increased attack speed on kill is my preference
5. Movement Speed if you really want but not necessary at all


I opt for a good pair of rare boots however for Uber Elder I slotted Kaom's Roots with 2% life regen.

Gloves
Spiked Gloves

1. Life
2. Resists
3. Flat Phys
4. Increased Attack Speed
5. Intelligence

I typically use spiked gloves however there are many options for this slot.

Belt
Stygian Vise

1. Life
2. Resists
3. Increased Elemental Damage
4. Increased Flask Recovery

Main Weapon
One-Handed Mace - Behemoth Mace

1. Phys Damage
2. Attack Speed
3. Critical Strike Chance

The higher your attack speed, the faster you will move with leap slam and the faster you will clear maps.

Off-hand Weapon
Prismatic Eclipse (3 Green Sockets)

If you want the fast clear speed there is no better choice. You can choose to use a stat stick if you want more damage.

Rings
Steel Rings

1. Life
2. Resists
3. Flat Phys Damage

Amulet
Shaper Rare Amulet

1. Flat Phys Damage
2. Intelligence
3. 20% Physical Damage as Added *element* Damage
4. 10% chance to gain frenzy, power or endurance charges on kill
5. Life
6. Resists



The Pantheon

1. Soul of Arakali - upgrade with Arachnoxia as early as possible to get added benefit from Blood Rage
2. Soul of Ryslatha or Soul of Tukohama - I use Ryslatha


Bandits

Kill All if you want the 2 skill points but Alira is useful for the extra damage and extra resists. Since the build using a few uniques it can be hard to maintain resists. Once your resists are in order though, I'd swap back to the 2 skill points.

Alira was used in the POB links.


Ascendancy Skills

1. Unstoppable Hero
2.Conqueror
3.Worthy Foe
4.First to Strike, Last to Fall
Last edited by Cleverist on Jun 4, 2018, 3:38:22 AM
Last bumped on Sep 3, 2018, 12:20:42 AM
Reserved
Great build. Clear speed on guardian runs looks good and they die pretty quickly too. Do you have some advice for a league starter?
🔰🌀✨ Video guides on youtube! https://www.youtube.com/KayGaming ✨🌀🔰
🔶🔷🔶 Kay's Summoner build guide: https://www.pathofexile.com/forum/view-thread/3179145 🔶🔷🔶
Impressive work, and I like how you've scaled Mace with Sunder. I assume high PDPS Maces are slightly cheaper than their Sword and Axe counterparts? I also like how you chose not to use a Shaper Stat Stick, which is not something I would have considered, but it looks like you've made it viable. I watched your Minotaur clip, and I did not know that Sunder could single target that fast!

Feedback on your POB:

Shocked should not be checked for Shaper DPS, since Shaper will never become shocked and POB assumes a 50% shock, which is extra impossible. By default, that box is meaningless for just about any build for Shaper DPS.

You chose Sin's Rebirth for the Unholy Might DPS, while keeping Onslaught checked. Your Abyss jewel gives you Onslaught chance, but this is not practical vs Shaper since you will not be procing that jewel reliably. So Onslaught should be unchecked, or you change the flask for a Silver + Warding.

Your pathing for Vitality Void costs you an effective 2 points. It's a personal choice if that cost is worth it. Grabbing that empty Dex node near Vaal Pact, taking 1 Mana and 1 Leech, then removing everything else, would keep your leech satisfied and capped, while gaining you 2 points and losing Vitality Void.

The four nodes leading to Fencing are not taken, and these are worth significant DPS. It could even be worth to drop some Mace nodes for this, which does seem not seem intuitive.

You do not path to the Scion Life area. This is easily fixed by removing your pathing on the very bottom left, where you've taken Bloodless and Bloody Bludgeon, and instead path between Warrior's Blood and Master of the Arena. This gives you enough points to take the beefy Constitution node, and a 1 point Jewel Socket. Depending on your jewel, you'll lose a little DPS but gain a few hundred HP. Remove Vitality Void and spec into Fencing, and you've gained DPS too.

I personally like Alira for most melee/crit builds, and I still feel the same here. For me, I'd swap 2 points of a Frenzy node for Alira's bonus, since the Cat-less version of this build does not have reliable Frenzy charges during Shaper. Alira is also really good for leveling and helps get resists settled; I see you have a decent amount of resists on your jewels.

====

I really like your build, and it looks like a complete beast from start to finish. I could see myself league starting with this in 3.3!
Thank you very much for the feedback.

I've gone through and made some changes to the POB. I didn't realise I accidentally posted the Aspect version, not the non-league specific version.

Leaving Onslaught on was an error so I've removed that. The reason I had shocked turned on for the Aspect version is that I run Vaal Lightning Trap and I couldn't figure out any other way to accommodate for the shock damage it gives. Any suggestions?

I actually tried playing around with a version of the build where I went to the Scion life ring earlier on but it ended up netting a DPS loss and at that stage I was using Belly of the Beast so didn't see the extra HP as that useful. I've gone back and rejigged the build though to pick up on Fencing and the Scion life ring and with my current set up it definitely yields a better result now. The added jewel socket will be very useful as well but in the lvl 94 build I have opted to not take it yet. Replacing my jewel socket on the far left gave me an extra skill point to use.

I never actually considered using Alira but I like the change. Maintaining resists was always a bit of a challenge due to the uniques I was using so it will definitely help that.

In the reworked version I would be able to maintain Vitality Void if I sacrifice some life but instead I'd prob just gain the extra two levels. Alternatively I'd swap out of Alira to get the 2 points backs if resists weren't a problem. The extra 20% leech rate is very useful and means I can face-tank a bit more.

As for not using a stat-stick. The main focus of this build for me was maximising clear speed while still being able to take down end game bosses. The added attack speed from Prismatic Eclipse is too good to give up. I'll upload a video soon showing a run using Brightbeak as well and you will see what I mean.
Last edited by Cleverist on May 23, 2018, 9:00:20 AM
The closest comparison in POB for Vaal Lightning Trap's debuff might be Aspect of the Spider (3 stacks). Both are a 15% increased damage taken debuff, so you could try applying that in your POB. Or just ignore it altogether.

Alira is also good for the 20 crit multi, and your char is hungry for crit multi if the Abyssus helmet is switched out. Abyssus does give ludicrous DPS though :)

The Culling Strike implicit on your offhand is very worthwhile, and it looks surprisingly affordable in Flashback for a 3G Prismatic.

Are Elemental Reflect maps able to be played without too much concern? The downside of awesome Shaper sticks is that ele reflect becomes unplayable, and I was wondering how your setup fares.
Re: Vaal Lightning Trap I've just opted to ignore it for now. I read one way is to custom craft "enemies take 15% increased damage" onto an item.

I can do all maps except Phys Reflect. For Ele Reflect you need to turn off Hatred and Herald of Ash (if you are using it). Once you get the 20% lightning damage amulet it does get a little bit more dicey end game but if you go a little slower it is doable still. Alternatively just swap out the amulet for that map.

For no leech maps I just slot a mana pot. The one life and one mana pot is easily enough to get by. For curse maps, in particular Temp Chains, I slot a Curse Immune flask. All other map mods are trivial.

I use either a 4% block implicit or a culling strike implicit depending on what I am doing. After a certain point with gear I just stuck to culling strike.
Leveling passive trees and gem listing added.
Thanks for your build. I'll try it as a league starter in 3.3
Hey Cleverist,

thanks for your build and the write-up. Definitely my league starter.

Spoiler
gear lvl 82


Cheers,

Xoow

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