General Caster Witch for new players

Click to see build--->Generic Witch Caster<---Click to see build

Less Crit More Defensive Alternate Build--->Alternate Build



So, i'm still fairly new as well, but with open beta coming up and lots of new people playing, I made this not only for myself, but to have a general "cookie cutter" type build..even though I hate cookie cutters. The passive tree is intimidating to new players when they first see it, don't worry..you will figure it out!

This is a 71 point build, you should have this completed by level 60 and getting ready for end game.

It basically has no specialized element..so you can use any spells you want.

It has all you need to have fun and not worry about messing up your build beyond playability for your first character. You can also deviate a bit if you need a bit more mana, or defensive skills, this branches out nicely so you can add on easily after you reach level 60.

SPECIFICS



NOTES

This is for your first play through. This is in no way the most optimum build for everyone..in fact there is no real optimum build in this game. You can pretty much make any build work if you put some thought and planing into it. However, using this as a guide for your first time through will help you get acquainted with everything.

As with everyone who ever plays this game..your first character will likely be a test character for you. Once you understand the game more, you can roll a new character with your massive knowledge and have some real kick ass fun.

Do NOT get the Chaos Inoculation skill until your energy shield is close to double your health.

For armor, you need to prioritize energy shield and evasion, while still making sure you can use all your gems and support gems.

More added later.



Comment, rate, and criticize.

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MesostelZe wrote:

If you remove the 5 points you have in the central energy shield circle, and put one into the Dex node at the far right, and then get Nullification and the 3 other Evasion and Energy Shield passives on the right side of your tree, you end up with +32% energy shield instead of +30%, and as a bonus, you have +36% evasion, and +10% all resists.

*Updated link with this. Thanks!

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RaistlinM wrote:

Every witch should be picking Clarity from Brutus, which will make many of those mana regen nodes obsolete.

Here's a more efficient build, that uses a few more points, but also has alot more versatility, survivability, and damage. With better options to choose from with subsequent passive points.

*Alternate build added! Thanks!

Nice beginner build. Just 1 thing im thinking about, is'nt it a good idea to take the "Pain Attunement" skill after you have got the "Chaos Inoculation" because it boost your dmg with 30% on low life, and with "Chaos Inoculation" you are on low life all the time so it shuld be active all the time, or am I wrong? :)

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Fladdermasken wrote:

Nice beginner build. Just 1 thing im thinking about, is'nt it a good idea to take the "Pain Attunement" skill after you have got the "Chaos Inoculation" because it boost your dmg with 30% on low life, and with "Chaos Inoculation" you are on low life all the time so it shuld be active all the time, or am I wrong? :)

Actualy u are on full life :) so pain attunement doesnt work. U need to have 1/3 of your max hp, to work with pain attunement. And let me tell you, i've been there, done that and do not advice it as a first character. Yes u can reserve your life with bloodmagic and some aura, but you are not imune to chaos dmg, that will kill u instanly in many scenarios. This will couse unability to level urself over lvl 60 or so..

This build is perfect, if u dont want to spend time calculating your character in advance and just want to play ALREADY! But i think 2 hours or so dedicated to thinking your char over will reflect in element specific build, where u can achieve better dmg.

Wow. Honest to god, I have not looked at your build before making mine ;-)
I am a new player, just started 2 days ago upon a friend's recommendation, and chose the Witch to be my first PoE class...

After learning that this ain't WoW (lol!) in terms of respec points, making wrong decisions may end up detrimental in the long run for a toon, especially since I am not too fond of creating a gazillion different characters. As such, I've taken a deep look at the skill tree armed with game basics for my class(base stats, energy shield, spells, elements, etc...) as well as general game mechanics which are pretty much stables in most RPGs (element and spell resistances and immunities, long boss fights and crowd control, etc...). I was not really willing to dip into a specific caster discipline (Fire Vs Cold or Lightning) because I tend to prefer versatility while facing the environment layed before me and get my skill bonuses to affect my spells globally rather than put all my eggs in the same basket. After all of that was taken into consideration, I have come up with this build which I named Azazella's Destiny

This build, which is fairly close to the one you've demonstrated, is focused primarily on a very high crit chance with increased crit multiplier, a splash of spell damage and of course, high energy shield for defense. Here are the cumulatives that I've calculated:

Intellect: 200 (gives 100 base mana and 40% Energy Shield)
Mana: 120 (20 from skills + 100 from intellect)
Mana mod (%): 16 %
Mana Regen: 100 %
Global spell damage: 37 %
Elemental spell damage: 52 % (15% from elemental + 37% global spell)
Critical Strike Chance: 355 %
Spell Critical Strike Chance: 470 % (115% spell crit + 355% global crit)
Critical Strike Multiplier: 120 %
Spell Critical Strike Multiplier: 160 % (40% spell + 120% global)
Energy Shield: 171 % (131% from skills + 40% from intellect)
Energy Shield Cooldown Reduction: 35 %
Immunity to Chaos damage


After coming here and seeing a similar build proved me that I'm on the right track ;-)

I noticed that your build puts points in agility and strength, I assume this is for gear requirements ?

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SH4D0W3D wrote:

I noticed that your build puts points in agility and strength, I assume this is for gear requirements ?

yup gear and gems. Spell totem and faster/multiple proj are popular and need str and dex.

And glad to see others have similar builds. :) makes it nice for the newcommers who want to play witch to get through their first character and learn more about the game :)

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Secksy wrote:

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SH4D0W3D wrote:

I noticed that your build puts points in agility and strength, I assume this is for gear requirements ?

yup gear and gems. Spell totem and faster/multiple proj are popular and need str and dex.

And glad to see others have similar builds. :) makes it nice for the newcommers who want to play witch to get through their first character and learn more about the game :)

Good to know. Thanks ! ;-)

Since mine is merely a model I can refer to as the game progresses and that it has taken into account the nearby Intellect node, I will be able to take those bonuses when the need arises. :)

These, make over emphasizing in crit chance near worthless

If you remove the 5 points you have in the central energy shield circle, and put one into the Dex node at the far right, and then get Nullification and the 3 other Evasion and Energy Shield passives on the right side of your tree, you end up with +32% energy shield instead of +30%, and as a bonus, you have +36% evasion, +10% all resists, and +10 dexterity.

I kind of think that ES circle in the middle of the tree could use a buff, especially as it is a dead end, and doesn't even connect around to the other side. It seems a bit hard to justify taking those nodes, even in CI builds.