[3.6] Crit Tempest Shield Ascendant + Abberath's and Lightning Bolt - Max block (75%)

Memest Shield

Important! This build is just for fun, not a serious build, I've been wanting to make a Tempest Shield build where TS was a main source of damage (and not use it to trigger Orb of Storms) and this is the result.

I understand many of the items I have on the PoB are worth multiple ex, feel free to submit cheaper variations on this build if you care that much.

Additionally, given the number of situational damage buffs on the build, the more realistic dps is probably about 50% of what PoB shows.

Contents

"
  • Videos
  • About this Build
  • Path of Building
  • Passive Tree, Ascendancy & Pantheon
  • Gem Setup
  • Gear, Flasks & Jewels
  • Leveling this Build
  • Playstyle, Mapping & Bossfights
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Miniguides & Translations
  • Changelog

_________________________________________________________________________

Videos

None made yet, but if I (or you) try the build, I'll post some videos.

_________________________________________________________________________

About this Build

Pros/Cons

+ Funny
+ TS deals ~250k per block per chain (So a total 1.25M)
+ Abberath's deals 225k per step
+ Lightning Bolt deals ~240k per crit (every 0.5s)

- Sooo many things

let me know what you think should go here.

Main Mechanics in this build

Chaining: Tempest Shield is a lightning-based spell with the ability to chain from monsters and destroyable objects, even around corners and out of your line of sight! The amount of times Tempest Shield can chain can be increased by enchantments.

Shock: An elemental status ailment which increases the damage an enemy takes by up to 50% for a duration.

Crit: Going all out on crit and multi, hitting between 75% and 95% crit chance with the damage skills

Block: Using A variety of things we hit max spell/attack block to take full advantage of Tempest Shield

_________________________________________________________________________

Path of Building

Spoiler

Here's the full Path of Building setup for this build, including all passive trees, gear choices and gems. To use this, click Import/Export Build and paste the full code or use Import from Pastebin. You can get Path of Building here.

Also a hastily put together life version https://pastebin.com/dJkZdzR6

_________________________________________________________________________

Passive Tree, Ascendancy & Pantheon

Spoiler

Passives

Will make a leveling Guide if there is any interest in the build

______________________________________________________________________

Ascendancy

Ascendant - Necromancer (Normal & Cruel): This is so we can get the increased block chance from Bone Offering

Ascendant - Trickster (Merciless): Significantly better survivability and some extra damage.

Path of the Witch (Uber): Saves 5 points and will require some respecing to take advantage of.

______________________________________________________________________

Pantheon

Soul of Arakaali (Major): Use this for Uber Elder, only first upgrade is needed, use this as main Pantheon.

Soul of Solaris (Major): Lots of damage reductions when upgraded.

Soul of Lunaris (Major): Upgrade counters Chain area mod, use when needed.

Soul of the Brine King (Major): Only useful if stunlocks (or block locks) are an issue.

Soul of Gruthkul (Minor): Additional physical mitigation is always good to have. (don't upgrade)

Soul of Tukohama (Minor): Additional physical mitigation and regen is always good to have. (while stationary)

Soul of Shakari (Minor): Additional chaos damage mitigation, upgrade saves a flask suffix.


_________________________________________________________________________

Gem Setup
Spoiler

Gems are typically in order of importance

Tempest Shield: is our "main" skill - Its a spell that, when cast, has a duration of 12 seconds. During that time if you block it refreshes its duration and lashes out with chaining damage (like a mini Arc).
It also gives a small amount of block chance.

Controlled Destruction: is a great damage boost with a crit chance penalty for the linked skill, which doesn't hurt us much in this case.

Increased Critical Strikes: Drastically increases crit chance and therefore damage.

Increased Critical Damage: Increases crit multi (while leveling because you will have less crit, this may have a lower priority).

Added Lightning Damage: Adds a bunch more base lightning damage.

Power Charge on Critical Strike: Permanent charge uptime (even on bosses) as well as some more damage per power charge.

______________________________________________________________________

Socketed in Abberath's Hooves

Added Lightning Damage: Adds a bunch more base lightning damage.

Concentrated Effect: A great damage boots with a AoR penalty for the link skill, the skill is almost single target anyway so it makes little difference.

Controlled Destruction: is a great damage boost with a crit chance penalty for the linked skill, which doesn't hurt us much in this case.

Increased Critical Strikes: Drastically increases crit chance and therefore damage.


______________________________________________________________________

Vaal Righteous Fire: At the cost of 30% of our ES we get a bunch more spell damage for our other spells, some DoT damage, as well as providing some buffs from having Soul Gain Prevention.

Increased Duration: Increase duration of skill and Soul Gain Prevention

Efficacy: lesser increased duration and some extra damage for the RF

______________________________________________________________________

Bone Offering: Significant block chance buff

Increased Duration: Increase duration of skill.

Arcane Surge: Gives arcane surge on every cast, so it buffs the rest of our skills.

______________________________________________________________________

Discipline: Extra ES for more defence

Depending on what mods you have on your watchers eye.
Wrath: Some More spell lightning damage
or
Zealotry: increased spell damage and crit chance

Enlighten: reduces the reserved mana to be above 0%

Herald of Thunder: Some more added damage and with the right helmet gives free innervate (while it cant shock, it should be killing shocked enemies)

______________________________________________________________________


A typical CwDt + IC setup. Cast when Damage taken triggers linked spells after your accumulated damage taken from hits reaches its treshold, which increases with gem level. Immortal Call is the spell we want to get triggered. Without Endurance Charges, it still gives a short invulnerability period against physical damage which is great to survive damage bursts such as the spikes Porcupines release on death. Increased Duration simply increases the duration of this physical invulnerability period.

For this to properly work, we need to keep CwDt at Level 1 and Immortal Call at Level 3!

Flame Dash: For those annoying times were it isn't worth walking. (must be high enough level to not get triggered by CwDt)

_________________________________________________________________________

Gear, Flasks & Jewels
Gear


Required Uniques: Shimmeron, Rumi's Concoction, The Blue Nightmare + 2 Might of the Meeks, Watcher's Eye (Spell block).

Helm: Rare Shaper ES Helmet with Tempest Shield chains an additional 3 times for "clear speed" and/or +1 to power charges, with Socketed Gems are Supported by Level 20 Innervate for "free" innervate.

Body: Incandescent Heart, Because we are CI this armour gives a flat 25% reduced elemental damage, additionally it gives a bunch more damage as extra chaos damage

Gloves: Elemental weakness on hit corruption on either:
- Rare ES gloves with mods like increased damage during flask effect or soul gain prevention and onslaught during soul gain prevention
- Voidbringer

Boots: Abberath's Hooves, allows for a difference source of damage and many of the things that buffed Tempest Shield buffed this too.
With Damage leech or regen enchants.

_________________________________________________________________________

Amulet: Choir of the Storms - Lots of damage and crit, as well as a very powerful Lightning Bolt every time we crit (with a cooldown of 0.5 seconds)

Rings: Gifts from above, some extra crit chance plus its both defensive and offensive with consecrate which give increased damage, crit chance and regen as well as block chance.

Belt: A rare Crystal Belt with flask duration and whatever stats you are lacking.

_________________________________________________________________________


Weapon: Shimmeron, A massive damage buff as well as some extra spell block chance at the cost of lightning damage take per second if we have crit recently, which we out leech/regen/etc, so it's no worry.

Shield: Light of Lunaris, massive damage buff will also giving good enough ES and block.

Flasks

Quicksilver Flask with increased movement speed.
Rumi's Concoction is required to get capped block chance.
The Sorrow of the Divine increased damage and gives zealots oath (regen applies to ES)
Wise Oak gives offense and defense, but requires some juggling with resistances.
Uncapped Resistance refers to the value inside brackets in your characters defense tab.
Atziri's Promise provides extra Damage, some Leech and lots of Chaos Resistance.
It can only drop from Atziri in the Apex of Sacrifice or Temple of Atzoatl.

Jewels


2x Might of the Meek: which gives 50% increased Effect of non-Keystone Passive Skills in Radius but Notable Passive Skills in Radius grant nothing
(in the top two jewel sockets around the scion start)

The Blue Nightmare: Mostly for the 15% spell block (works in conjunction with Might of the Meek) , but also gives some extra damage and some unnecessary power charge generation.
(in the last jewel slot near the scion start)

Energy From Within: Some extra ES from the life nodes up at the witch.

Watcher's Eye is a highend jewel, which can provide strong aura-related mods while also giving us Life and ES. It can only drop from the Elder (with 2 mods) and Uber Elder (with 3 mods).

Good mods for this build are:

(Discipline) #% chance to block spell while affected by discipline (Required!)
(Wrath) #% increased Lightning Damage
(Wrath) Damage Penetrates #% Lightning Resistance
(Zealotry) Consecrated Ground you create causes enemies to take #% increased Damage
(Zealotry) 180% increased Maximum total Recovery per second from Energy Shield Leech


_________________________________________________________________________

Special thanks to Enki91 because I used his build guide as a template for the post (not the build)
Last edited by James14294 on May 5, 2019, 1:16:34 AM
Last bumped on May 7, 2019, 11:02:02 PM
Saved for future use extra stuff like suggestions or whatever
Having now tested it in standard for fun, I'm going to have to make a few changes, will posts updates as i make them, but all in all its actually a surprisingly functional build. It's also really satisfying to block a bit and have everything pop

Report Forum Post

Report Account:

Report Type

Additional Info