ShakCentral’s Vortex Occultist: Beginner-Oriented | All Content | Budget | HC, SSF, & Console

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❆ Get you a Quicksilver Flask from Nessa and buy Orb of Storms. Get Frost Bomb from Tarkleigh and check wands / boots. You want 2 items with BG links now. Gems should be linked as follows: Explosive Trap with Arcane Surge, and (if you’ve hit lvl 4) Frost Bomb with Onslaught.

Ingame tool tips displays arcane surge isn't compatible with explosive trap. Is it an error ?

Hey there, I was looking through your build and didn't find any mentions about https://pathofexile.gamepedia.com/Malachai%27s_Artifice.

For the price it normally costs it's a considerable damage boost that you can pop on the boss for that juicy -50% cold res.
It has some downsides like taking slot of crafted stat ring and denying gear that adds raw cold spell damage, but still can be considered into this build if you can manage minuses it comes with.

Thank you very much for the guide, very helpful. One thing I don't understand yet: why level six Vortex gems? What's the purpose?

Once again, many thanks, I subscribed to your Twitch channel as a small thank you.

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If you don’t have 6 Vortex gems leveling in your weapon swap yet, get them going.

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Fireviperrr wrote:

Thank you very much for the guide, very helpful. One thing I don't understand yet: why level six Vortex gems? What's the purpose?

Once again, many thanks, I subscribed to your Twitch channel as a small thank you.

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If you don’t have 6 Vortex gems leveling in your weapon swap yet, get them going.

After getting gems to level 20 you either sell them for chaos to get better gear or continue upping their Quality to 20 and try your luck Vaaling them for a chance to get lvl 21/20q gem.

Thanks for clarifying!

Died at 55 in Act 6 last location. Build is good and fun but lacks defenses for HC I feel, and it needs some as you need to jump into monsters to cast Vortex. I imagine later it will shine. I wonder as well if it would be better to get CI earlier for chaos/poison immunity (I think it was poison + hits from other monsters that got me).

I am thinking about using this on console tho but for SC char.

I generally get CI right before meeting Shakari in act 9 because her poison... tickles (That's what I remember but don't quote me on that). I don't touch HC with a stick and i'm terribly undergeared when leveling so I'm not sure my piece of advice matters.

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Fresh2000 wrote:

3. Phase run, not sure why is that with CWDT link, is the idea for this to activate when we are being hit? why there is no level cap on it then? I don't really see use for it when using Flame Dash but again I never used Phase run before.

4. I am leveling storm brand, frost bomb and orb of storms but getting the needed crafting things seems impossible and so far at this time, especially multiple mods one that I am not sure if I will ever be able to use them as intended in this guide. I am not even sure how to get needed prophecies for that pale court thingy.

5. Why we use Vaal Cold snap? I managed to get it now but the vaal version doesn't seem needed, everything dies with use of vortex and cold snap (at least not yet I'm in act 7)

6. I constantly have issues with Mana, and I only use discipline aura, I was wondering if it is because I constantly mash Vortex, cold snap, frost bomb, flame dash and that is not a way this build is intended to be played...

3. Phase run is no triggered by cwdt as it's too high level. You have to use it manually. However it benefits from increased duration, like Immoral Call does. (As a support, increased duration doesn't need to be "triggered", which is nice). quick edit: the hard part is getting "int/es" boots with 3 red slots.

4. You need pale court only for multimod crafting. until maps you only need "trigger as socketed spell when you use a skill". I don't remember which syndicate member has the craft thou. Until maps, any damage on the weapon is a bonus. I did beat Kitava on a claw with the suffix... (but not in HC).

5. It's a nice damage boost against big bad bosses and syndicate, damage stacks with vortex and (normal) cold snap, and both benefits from all our dot+cold bonuses. Plus normal cold snap applies bonechill. It all adds up pretty nicely for bosses, or even fast mapping as the cooldown is low.

6. The best way to mitigate mana issue is one of the mana 2 enchants for boots. (i prefer the 0.6 leech one, SonsOfKorhal prefers the 2% one). Until then, yes, it's hard. I only use vortex, and sometimes flame dash, very seldom cold snap and both vaal skills (bosses). Other spells are triggered automatically.

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Killerlotus wrote:

Hey there, I was looking through your build and didn't find any mentions about https://pathofexile.gamepedia.com/Malachai%27s_Artifice.

For the price it normally costs it's a considerable damage boost that you can pop on the boss for that juicy -50% cold res.
It has some downsides like taking slot of crafted stat ring and denying gear that adds raw cold spell damage, but still can be considered into this build if you can manage minuses it comes with.

The tree goes right by elemental equilibrium, you can take that keystone and use a normal ring too.

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Fresh2000 wrote:

hi,

I have been playing Enki Arc build as I liked the format for new players. That is why I have decided to give this build a go and I am having fun so far. It is wierd feeling as I am jumping into packs and crazy mayhem rare monsters + chest monsters and somehow I don't die. It is strange feeling after playing other builds and being afraid of everything (I play HC).

But anyway I wanted provide some feedback and/or maybe get answers to things that are still strange to me.

1. In Act 2 you take dual wielding node and you drop it very late, after Act 10. I am wondering why and if it wouldn't be better to spend those points somewhere else. I played with 2 wands but not sure if for HC having shield made more sense.

2. Leveling section is very good but sometimes I was missing what links I should go to, I had to figure out stuff from your section for links, but as I was playing as new character in Event league I didn't have much options for links and was not sure what is crucial and what is not. Act 6 for so many 4L was way to fast to me, I was not able to find that many items with links I need and didn't have enough currency to get them going.

3. Phase run, not sure why is that with CWDT link, is the idea for this to activate when we are being hit? why there is no level cap on it then? I don't really see use for it when using Flame Dash but again I never used Phase run before.

4. I am leveling storm brand, frost bomb and orb of storms but getting the needed crafting things seems impossible and so far at this time, especially multiple mods one that I am not sure if I will ever be able to use them as intended in this guide. I am not even sure how to get needed prophecies for that pale court thingy.

5. Why we use Vaal Cold snap? I managed to get it now but the vaal version doesn't seem needed, everything dies with use of vortex and cold snap (at least not yet I'm in act 7)

6. I constantly have issues with Mana, and I only use discipline aura, I was wondering if it is because I constantly mash Vortex, cold snap, frost bomb, flame dash and that is not a way this build is intended to be played...


Thanks for the build so far I have a lot of fun and didn't die yet ;)

dont quote me on this, as I generally just do my own stuff for levelling (i dont follow guides etc.)

1. for HC if you want the safety, sure take a shield, and dont allocate dual wield nodes. not an issue, not a big concern, just do what you see fit. I believe the dual wield nodes are for greater mobility in early game.

2. dont be too hung up on "optimal" links, esp for levelling. in most of my characters, i'm usually just a 4L main skill with multiple movement skills/ random auras/heralds aka anything that helps just use. for this build, I was a 4L vortex with a manual casted storm brand - faster casting - elemental prolif, and some movement skills like flame dash and phase run, running malevolence + disc aura. I didn't even have a CWDT setup. just fill your gem slots with whatever you have that is useful.

3. I believe the phase run is in the CWDT setup to make use of the increased duration. it is intentionally overlevelled so you can cast it manually then let it get triggered. (although I have experimented with CWDT casted phase run and it works pretty well as well, letting you phase run thru mobs when you get hit with enough damage, kind of like an escape mechanism). for myself, phasing is really useful to get into the middle of packs to drop your vortex, I have % phasing on kill jewels to do this as well. it just makes the build smoother. my phase run and flame dashes are always on cooldown, SPAM IT ;)

4. trigger socketed gem is a QOL line. if you are ok with manually casting it, there are absolutely no issues. as for multi-mod, get a crafter to help, or buy it direct of poetrade, or buy the map fragments and run the map yourself. (google this - how to run pale council map, it is not a prophecy).

5. vaal cold snap is used because a vaal version of cold snap exists. cold snap is used because it is linked to support gems that can buff our dps. I use cold snap on bosses, and use vaal cold snap whenever I can. vaal cold snap is useful in mapping where I can just turn it on and run around to kill mobs without even needing to drop vortex. in other words, if you do not have vaal cold snap, the build still works fine.

6. this build is known to be somewhat mana starved. generally, you do not want to spam cast cold snap. arcane surge and some other mana regeneration nodes aid us in regenerating mana. but yes, it is not uncommon to have some mana issues. generally, you do not need to cast frostbomb either. storm brand to proc EE and EO is sufficient and then drop vortex. this applies to most mobs. you'd only want to frostbite+frostbomb+cold snap when dealing with harder mobs like bosses.

hopes this helps.