Mana Feedback Sorceress [1.2]

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ATTENTION SIGMA PLAYERS

I'm currently working on updating this guide. Just finishing up the clvl 115 Ubers. Poison/Lightning is the spec I'm going with. Will hopefully have a new guide posted by the end of next week.



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EZ NAV
Early Game - Mid-Game - End-Game - Challenges - Uberquests - Crafting
Official Documentation - Wiki - Discord Channel - Acronyms and Terminology



INTRODUCTION

A Mana Feedback Sorceress is a Caster Sorc that eschews the Elemental paths and instead uses raw Mana to devastate her enemies. She takes full advantage of her massive Mana pool and uses her knowledge of the arcane to bend the very fabric of space and time to her will.

Her playstyle is different than the traditional "stand back and spam 1 spell" playstyle of other Casters. Her spells are powerful, but they're slow and take time between casts. Setting up the field and proper positioning play important roles in her success.

For this build, damage is based entirely on Max Mana and Skill Points--with gear being focused primarily on boosting these. Defensive capabilities will come mostly from Skill Passives, active Damage Reduction, and summons. Skill Points will be distributed among the Arcane, Lightning, Cold, and Melee trees. The Lightning/Cold trees simply provide the best defensive passive combo for a Sorc, and the added defense+Avoid will allow summons to survive longer than with any other combo, even with only a single point invested into summons.

Finally, this build requires skill-switching, but the learning process is gradual. You'll have plenty of time to get used to using the skills you have before adding a new skill to your repertoire.





DISCLAIMER

1. I make no claims as to the originality of this build, nor to the ideas and strategies contained in this guide.

2. This guide was written around the base M2017-1.2.0.1 patch. Since circumstances on the Realm may change from Season to Season, gameplay adjustments may be necessary if playing TSW. In other words: adapt, or die.



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PROS AND CONS

Pros:
- Screen-wide damage.
- Screen-wide slow.
- Army of summons.
- Break Physical immunities natively.
- Good Defense (300k+).
- Decent Life (10k+).
- Multiple instaheal sources.
- No need for Spell Damage, Energy Factor, or Elemental Pierce.
- Good farmer with cheap gear.

Neutral:
- Skill-switching is mandatory.

Cons
- Lower DPS compared to some Caster builds (Feedback spells are slow).
- Some “Ultimate” End-Game gear pieces are expensive, but they're not required for success.
- Playstyle can be frustrating at times.
- Needs a fully-geared merc to even attempt Fauztinville.



FINAL STATS

STR - Enough for gear
DEX - Enough for gear
VIT - None
NRG - All



FINAL SKILLS

28 Points - Immersion, Familiar
26 Points - Warp Armor
25 Points - Snow Queen
10 Points - Mana Sweep
1 Point - Blade Spirits, Antimass, Ice Elementals, Nova Charge, Chronofield, Symbol of Esu, Force Blast



BASIC PLAYSTYLE

- Summon Familiars -> exit town -> summon Ice Elementals and Blade Spirits.
- Debuff enemies with Chronofield -> drain your Mana pool with Antimass -> attack with Immersion or Mana Sweep.
- Use Hailstorm or Psionic Storm as supplemental damage.
- Use Force Blast to debuff enemies, when necessary.
- Use Force Wall to keep enemies away, when necessary.



SKILLS BREAKDOWN


INNATE

Force Wall
Creates an impassible wall for a short time. Useful for keeping enemies at bay, but it's cooldown (CD) timer prevents it from being a staple skill early on. However, at some point, it loses it's CD timer, meaning you can spam it to keep some enemies permastunned or out of melee range indefinitely.



ARCANE

Immersion
Feedback spell that fires in a linear wave, dealing damage based on the total Mana lost. Primary spell early on. Later, used as a single-target and boss-killer spell.

Familiar
Untargetable summon whose Zann Esu's Rite aura gives a +25% bonus to Mana and faster cast rate. It also give +1 to all skills for every 4 Base Points and 1 extra Familiar for every 5 Base Points.

Arcane Torrent
Medium-range Feedback Spell that deals Physical damage based on current Mana and Magic damage based on maximum Mana. Since this build relies on having an empty Mana pool, this spell will rarely be used.

Mana Sweep
Screen-wide Feedback spell that deals percentage-based damage based on total Mana lost, as well as replenishes a certain amount of Mana when it hits an enemy. Used for general clearing of high-density areas or as a finisher.

Antimass
Instaheal spell that converts a certain percentage of current Mana to Life, emptying the Mana pool in the process. Restores more Life with more Mana in the pool at the time it was cast. More Skill Points will reduce its CD timer. Used primarily as a “prebuff” before using Immersion or Mana Sweep.



COLD

Frigid Sphere
Spell that fires off an ice ball and explodes into a mid-range Cold nova on impact. Used as a synergy for Ice Elementals, granting them percentage-based Life boosts per Base Point.

Snow Queen
Passive that grants percentage-based Max Life (but will not exceed 25%) and flat defense per Base Point.

Summon Ice Elementals
Summons whose Frost Armor aura gives a 150% defense boost and 15% DR to any party member in range. Used as a support summon to augment party defense or as cheap frozen meat shields.



LIGHTNING TREE

Warp Armor
Passive that grants TCD and Avoid. Both Base and Skill Points increase its TCD bonus, but with every 2 Base Points invested, an extra 1% chance to Avoid damage is gained.

Nova Charge
Periodically emits a Lightning nova. The main reason for putting a point here is for the 25% Base DEX added to NRG. It won't add much to the total Mana pool, but every little bit helps.



MELEE

Summon Blade Spirits
Ghostly floating swords that don't provide any buffs, but are remarkably tough. They'll be your tanks.



REWARD SKILLS

Chronofield
Full-screen debuff that reduces an enemy's movement speed and resistance to Physical damage as long as they're within the field. This Physical resistance reduction will break Physical immunities.

Symbol of Esu
Allows for the creation of an infinite number of Moon Symbols, which are used like potions to restore a percentage of your Max Life instantly. Unlike Healing pots, they don't remove Poison effects.

Force Blast
A fast-moving debuff spread that reduces enemies' Physical damage and cast rate. Incredibly useful against rangers.



OSKILLS

Hailstorm
Multi-hitting spell that deals Cold damage over a small AoE for about 7 seconds. It has a 1.5 second precast, but it's effects can stack with multiple casts. It can be boosted with +Cold Spell Damage, -Enemy Cold Res, +Skills, Energy, and Energy Factor. Used against Physical-immunes and enemies with high regen.

Wyrd
Spell that emits a Weapon Damage Modifier (WDM) nova every second for 4 seconds. It's CD timer is reduced with more Skill Points. Used to apply Open Wounds to some Purify Ubers and enemies with regen rates higher than your damage output.



WHAT IS FEEDBACK DAMAGE?

Feedback Damage is its own unique damage type, different from Spell Damage. It's counted as Physical damage against enemy immunities, therefore it will not damage Physical-immunes, and its effectiveness is reduced against enemies with Damage Reduction. It cannot be boosted by +Phys/Magic Spell Damage, nor Energy Factor. It's also not a part of the -Enemy Res mod. The only ways to boost Feedback damage are with more total Mana, Physical pierce (from Chronofield or Bane), and more points into Feedback Spells (either Base Points or Skill Points).



SKILL QUIRKS

Immersion - Since it's slow and fires in a wave, it's best to cast it in the general direction of an enemy group, then move on to another group. If the first group survives, hit them again. Also, due to the game's 8-direction limitation, proper positioning when casting is important.
Mana Sweep - Rather than hitting enemies all at once, Mana Sweep works like an invisible nova, hitting enemies as it expands.
Antimass - If you cast Mana Sweep in a crowded area, then cast Antimass before the sweep is complete, both your Life and Mana will be restored.
Chronofield - Regular monsters in Destruction have a 2% chance to spawn with an extra 75% Physical resistance, which means Chronofield won't break the Physical immunity of some Phys-immune monsters. H/t Suchbalance.
Familiar - If you put a Base Point into Famaliar to reach blvl 4, 8, 12, 16, 20, 24, or 28 while they're already summoned, you'll need to resummon them before the new +Skills value will take effect.
Sorc Summon Synergies - Sorc summons inherit the “Elemental” bonuses form your Passives, but they don't gain the Life bonuses from Vengeful Power, Snow Queen, or Living Flame (they do inherit Living Flame's regen, though).
Sorc Summon Auras - Zann Esu's Rite and Frost Armor only take effect when you're in the field, not while you're in town. Do all your buffing and summoning in the field so your army can benefit from Familiars' +Skills bonuses.
Immersion vs. Mana Sweep (as applied to this build specifically) - Immersion has lower initial damage over a narrower field, but higher average DPS. This makes it better for tanky mobs and single-targets. Mana Sweep has higher initial damage and covers a wider range, but has lover average DPS because it takes longer between casts. This makes it better for clearing out high-density trash mobs or as a finisher.



BREAKPOINTS

FCR:
8/22/42/78/157 (6 fpa) - Orb
6/19/42/83/194 (5 fpa) - Staff
FHR:
5/11/20/35/60/109/280 (3 fpa)
FBR:
3/7/13/20/32/48/75/129/280 (4 fpa)

Source: Speedcalc 1.2 by Terrys



MERCENARIES

For this build, a Rogue Priestess is recommended. Her skills synergize with your skills and those of your summons better than any other merc, providing better overall survivability to the entire party.

Rogue Priestess (WIP)
► GEAR


Tip:
Mercs inherit both your GF and MF, on top of any they get from gear, as long as they get the kill. They also benefit from the +Skills mod found on gear. They cannot use oskills.

Also, a mercs' Res cap is higher than yours (95%).



SUMMONED MINION RESISTANCES

Summons gain 15% all res per Skill Point up to a maximum of 75%. They can gain more res with the Summoned Minion Resistances mod from gear/skills/Charms, but they cannot utilize more than +75% from these sources. They suffer the same res penalties you do in later difficulties.

Summoned Minion Resistance Penalties per Difficulty (assuming at least 5 Skill Points in a summon skill):

Hatred (+/-0% Res Penalty)
75% innate resistances. An additional +25% Minion Res will make them immune.
Terror (-50% Res Penalty)
25% innate resistances. An additional +75% Minion Res will make them immune.
Destruction (-100% Res Penalty)
-25% innate resistances. An additional +75% Minion Res will give them 50% resistances.

Tip:
Summoned Minions (and Reanimates) inherit your MF.

Source: Suchbalance



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BUILD

► expand


GEAR

► EXPAND


WALKTHROUGH

Hatred (clvl 1-55):

Act 1:

    When you start, use Force Wall to separate enemies and thwak them with your staff. At clvl 2, put a point into Immersion and start spellcasting. When your Mana pool drops to around 10%, a single Immersion will 1-shot most non-Elites.

    Tip:
    Don't have Gheed reveal the map until after completing the Den of Evil quest. It will make this quest much easier. Do this on every difficulty.

    As you level, distribute points evenly across the 4 Trees. At clvl 6, you'll gain access to Familiar. Leave it at 1 point for now. Boosting your other skills first is more important. At clvl 7, put 1 more point into Immersion. This will increase it's Mana cost enough that you won't need to use another spell to drain your Mana anymore.

    As for Stat Points, put 38 into DEX (to reach 63 total DEX) and 35 into STR (to reach 45 total STR). After that, put the rest into NRG.

    If Kashya gives you a Rogue Ranger merc after completing the Sisters' Burial Grounds quest, hire a Priestess instead.

    When you reach Tristram, farm Griswold's Treasure for your Orb and Body Armor. At clvl 13, make
    Iblis
    Iblis
    Gloves

    'TyrSur'
    Runeword Level: 90
    +40 Spell Focus if Sanguine Covenant is Active
    +10% Maximum Mana if Solar Flare is Active
    +(37 to 42)% to Fire Spell Damage
    (25 to 35)% to Energy
    Regenerate Mana +(10 to 15)%
    Fire Absorb 4%
    +10 to Light Radius
    and
    Pax Mystica
    Pax Mystica
    Staves

    'Tir'
    Runeword Level: 10
    +1 to All Skills
    +7% to Spell Damage
    +(2 to 5) to Blink
    Elemental Resists +(11 to 15)%
    (11 to 13)% Magic Find
    .

    At clvl 15, make
    Rainbow
    Rainbow
    Belts

    'Eth'
    Runeword Level: 15
    +5% to Spell Damage
    +(6 to 10)% to Summoned Minion Resistances
    Regenerate Mana +(5 to 10)%
    Elemental Resists +(10 to 15)%
    (6 to 8)% Magic Find
    +2 to Light Radius
    in a T1 Sash for the extra Res and MF.

    You'll reach clvl 18 in the Monastery, which will give you access to Blade Spirits, Warp Armor, and Mana Sweep. At this point, it's more convenient to use an Arcane Torrent/Mana Sweep combo and save Immersion for tougher enemies. Leave your Blade Spirits at 1 point for now. Boosting Warp Armor and Snow Queen will make them hearty enough.

    You'll get the Catalyst of Disenchantment from the Smith. With this, you can turn spare Unique items you find into Arcane Shards (except Uniques from Griswold's Treasure Box). But don't use it on any Unique quivers, jewels, or jewelry. Hold onto them instead. These can be turned into more valuable Signets of Learning later.

    Tip:
    Gold can be an issue early on. Selling jewels, rings, and amulets will net you a bigger profit and take up less inventory space than random junk. Also, be sure to pick up and save every apple you find. You'll use them later to bankroll your MO buying binge.

Act 2:

    Poison-based attacks will hurt more, but you don't need to worry about res yet. That said, if you're having trouble, socket your gear with +Res jewels and/or Res gems (Ambers, Bloodstones, Onyxes, and Turquoises). Focus on Poison and Fire, then Lightning, and finally Cold.

    You'll reach clvl 24 in the Sewers, at which point you get access to Ice Elementals and Antimass. The Antimass/Immersion combo will be awkward at first, but as you gain +Skills gear and more NRG, it will play much more smoothly. As with Blade Spirits, there's no need to spend points boosting Ice Elementals yet.

    Be sure to activate the Halls of the Dead Waypoint before leaving the Act.

    Zoltun Kulle guards the entrance to Duriel's Lair. He's not tough, but his Lightning attacks will do serious damage.

    Tip:
    Cubing 2x Arcane Crystals and a Healing pot will create a completed Horadric Staff.

Act 3:

    Many enemies have Elemental on-death procs, so having around 50% Fire and Cold res is a good idea. Some Poison res couldn't hurt either, in case you get stuck in a Glooper's Miasma.

    If you're questing normally, the Jade Figurine for the Golden Bird quest will likely drop in the Spider Cavern, as you'll get your first Superunique kill there while looking for Khalim's Eye.

    Tip:
    Cubing 2x Arcane Crystals and a Mana pot will create a completed Khalim's Will.

    By the end of A3, you'll be around clvl 40. Before moving on, farm Mephisto for enough ACs to uptier your Orb to T3 (don't forget to add a Rune to the recipe), as well as to create your Shield and Belt in T1 bases. Then, farm at least 6 more ACs to use for uptiering your gear later.

    At clvl 41, use your 3 unspent Skill Points and bump Familiar up to blvl 4. Then resummon it so the new +Skills value takes effect.

    Tip:
    You can create an Arcane Cluster to store Arcane Crystals by cubing an AC with an Oil of Craft. Cube an AC with the Cluster to put it into storage. Cube the Cluster to pull an AC out of storage.

Act 4:

    The only thing of note here is the Catalyst of Destruction, dropped by Hephasto. You'll use this later to prep base items for Runeword creation.

    In the Chaos Sanctuary, 3 of the seals will release a Superunique enemy.
    - Ghom (east) is fairly tanky and its Tremor and Fortress will take decent chunks of your life. He is the hardest of the 3 to kill.
    - Magdha (west) uses Fire and Poison spells and spawns with minions. Sometimes spawns with full immunities for a short time.
    - Buyard Cholik (north) also spawns with minions. They all use Stormcrows, which does decent damage.

    Diablo's Flamestrike and Bloodstorm can do a lot of damage, but having high Fire res will help protect you. The easiest thing to do is keep him inside the pentagram while you run around the perimeter, hitting him with Immersion when you can, and Mana Sweep as often as you can. Let your summons distract his minions. When he runs, trap him in a corner. Then he's easy pickings.

    The Scroll of Athulua Diablo drops will tell you about the first Level Challenge. After you take Tyrael's portal, go back to A2 and complete the Level Challenge 1.

Act 5:

    Detonators are the most dangerous enemies here. They have a ctc Detonate on-death. It's a slow-moving fireball that will do massive damage, possibly even 1-shotting you, even with 75% Fire res.

    Tip:
    The side areas in Act 5 (Infernal Pit, Pit of Acheron, Abaddon, and Icy Cellar) are filled with Elite mobs that are much tougher than normal Elites, but the drops in these areas are better and the XP gain is much higher than in normal areas.

    Once you complete the Siege on Harrogath quest, use the Frigid Highlands Waypoint to farm Shenk for 2 more Marks of Infusion (3 in total). Then, make your Honorifics (buy T1 Magic items from Charsi and Gheed if you need to). Sell some apples and orb them each with 4x All Res, 2x DEX, and 2x STR. This will res-cap you and allow you to wear T3 versions of your Body Armor, Belt, and Shield. Use the Arcane Crystals you farmed earlier to uptier your TUs to T3.

    At clvl 46, use your 4 unspent Skill Points to bring Familiar up to blvl 8 and resummon.

    At clvl 50, your Elemental Prism will activate. Its +15% All Attributes bonus, coupled with 1 more STR+DEX orb per Honorific, will allow you to wear T4 versions of your TU armor pieces and a T5 Orb. This is as high as you'll uptier your gear for now, but keep turning all spare TUs into ACs. As for your Honorifics, add 1 more All Res orb per Honorific, then shift your focus to Minion Res, MF, and NRG--as your clvl allows.

    Baal is easier than Diablo. The main thing to watch out for are the black circles he casts. Each one will erupt into a large AoE attack that will take a large chunk of your Life if you're hit. When you see one, move. Just keep him surrounded with summons and hit him with Immersion and Mana Sweep.

    Baal will drop the Scroll of Kurast, telling you about the Ennead Challenge. After you've taken Tyrael's portal and been granted your “Slayer” title, go back to A3 in Hatred and complete it.




Terror (clvl 55-110):

The biggest thing when starting Terror is making sure you're res-capped. Your Honorifics and Elemental Prism will be enough if you followed the listed orb plan for Honorifics. But if you're still short, add some Res orbs to your jewelry or socket your Body Armor and Shield with Res gems.

You'll start collecting Evil Eyes from specific Veteran monsters native to each Act. Cubing 1 of each Evil Eye (5 in total) together with your CC will add a bonus to it.

Note:
Veteran monsters won't always spawn in their designated areas during a specific game. Don't worry if you reach the end of an Act and haven't seen one. You'll have plenty of opportunities to collect these Monster Tokens later on.

Act 1:

    You'll reach clvl 66 somewhere in the Monastery. At which point you'll have enough points into Mana Sweep to eliminate its CD timer. The Antimass/Mana Sweep combo will let you adopt a more passive playstyle that will become more effective as you gain more +Skills items. For the passive playstyle, let your summons take point while you hang back and hit the room with Mana Sweep. Against tougher enemies and bosses, switch back to the more active playstyle you've been using with Immersion.

    Since you won't be putting any more points into Mana Sweep, you can start spending points to boost summons if you choose. But be sure you keep 4 skill points in reserve for boosting Familiar every 24 clvls--like now. Use 4 skill points to bring Familiar to blvl 12 and resummon.

    The first Evil Eye is dropped by Clawstorm Terrors in the Monastery's Jail.

    Andariel will drop the Scroll of the Zakarum, telling you about the second Level Challenge. Take note of the Challenge's maximum level req and be sure not to exceed clvl 90 until after it's been completed.

Act 2:

    Starting around A2 Sewers, monsters will start dropping Sacred gear and Shrines. Items to collect include:

    • Sacred base Jared's Stone
    • Sacred base Lamellar Armor
    • T6 Magic Leather Gloves
    • T6 Magic Boots (the ones marked "Boots")
    • T6 Magic Sash
    • T6 base Circlet or Coronet
    • T6 base Sash
    • T6 base Lamellar Armor
    • Eerie Shrines (all of them)
    • Abandoned Shrines (10-30. Used to craft high-AR gear required for some Ubers)
    • 9x jewels with +(1 to 2)% NRG (preferably Rares with Res and flat Mana, but rerolled Magics are fine)

    Tip:
    You can create a Vessel to store Shrines by cubing a Shrine with an Oil of Craft. Then, just cube a full Shrine with it's corresponding Vessel to store it. Cube the Vessel again to pull a Shrine out of storage.

    Belladonna Extracts may also start dropping around this time. They're handy to have around for when you need to adjust Stat/Skill points later.

    Finally, collect and upgrade all Runes higher than Zod in order to make 1 Kur Rune, 1 Thur Rune, 1 Ath Rune, and 1 Vith Rune.

    Be sure to activate the Halls of the Dead Waypoint on your way through the Act.

    Fairy Witches in the Canyon of the Magi will drop the second Evil Eye.

Act 3:

    Make your way to the Swampy Pit in the Flayer Jungle and complete the Level Challenge 2. If the Death Projector is your first Superunique kill in A3, be sure to grab the Jade Figurine so you can complete the Golden Bird quest.

    LC2 is the last level-restricted event. Once it's done, you're free to level as much as you want.

    Manglers and Cruciators in the Kurast areas will tear your world apart. Make sure they're targeting a summon instead of you.

    Glowing Blobs in Travincal will drop the third Evil Eye.

    Mephisto can be a real pain when he summons Que Hagans, who in turn summon Peace Warders. Kill them asap. Stay out of his Lightning Arena and try to have as much Cold res as you can to protect yourself from Frozen Crown.

Act 4:

    Elemental attacks will do decent damage here, even when res-capped, and you'll find yourself using Antimass more to heal than to drain your Mana pool. Socket your Body Armor with perfect Res gems for a little extra protection.

    Hellcat Priestesses' spell-lockout aura will make life miserable, especially when Heretics are around.

    Izual will drop the Catalyst of Learning. Use it to turn those extra Unique quivers, jewels, and jewelry you've been collecting into Signets of Learning. Everything, that is, except
    Empyrean Band
    Empyrean Band
    Ring

    Required Level: 40
    Item Level: 40
    1% Chance to cast level 18 Singularity on Kill
    (3 to 5)% to All Attributes
    Maximum Life +3%
    Maximum Mana +10%
    (5 to 15)% Gold Find
    and
    Teganze Pendant
    Teganze Pendant
    Amulet

    Required Level: 60
    Item Level: 70
    +1 to All Skills
    +10% to Fire Spell Damage
    +10% to Lightning Spell Damage
    +10% to Cold Spell Damage
    Maximum Life +(3 to 5)%
    Maximum Mana +(20 to 30)%
    Elemental Resists +10%
    +(13 to 38) Mana after each Kill
    . If you've found any of these, hold onto them.

    Landmasses in the Plains of Despair and/or River of Flame will drop the fourth Evil Eye. They spam SoR, which will destroy your minions and hit-lock you to death. If you can, try to trap them so you can kill them safely from a distance.

    Inside the Chaos Sanctuary (and beyond), item level drops will be ilvl 99. Items to collect from here on include:

    • 2x Rare Sacred War Staff
    • 2x Rare Sacred Jared's Stone
    • 2x Rare Sacred Bone or Spiked Shield
    • 2x Rare Sacred Circlet or Coronet
    • 2x Rare Sacred Sash
    • 1x Rare Sacred Scepter-class weapon
    • 1x Rare Sacred Leather Gloves
    • 1x Rare Sacred Boots (the ones marked “Boots”)
    • 1x Rare Sacred Gambeson
    • Witchhunter's Hood
      Witchhunter's Hood
      Cap (Sacred)

      Defense: (2136 - 2611) to (2161 - 2642)
      Required Level: 90
      Required Strength:
      250
      Item Level: 1
      +(80 to 120)% Enhanced Defense
      10% to Strength
      10% to Dexterity
      Maximum Elemental Resists +2%
      Elemental Resists +(31 to 40)%
      Physical Resist 5%
      (16 to 20)% Bonus to Defense
      Requirements -50%
      Socketed (4)

      Witchhunter's Attire
      (Assassin Claw Set)
      (Assassin Set piece)
    • Any amulet with the Hailstorm oskill (ideally, a Rare with +Skills, +CSD, and -ECR, but a rerolled Magic is fine).
    • Any ring with the Wyrd oskill (ideally, a Rare with +Skills, but a rerolled Magic is fine).
    • Ilvl 99 jewels for crafting

    Tip:
    The reason for collecting 2 versions of some Rare Sacred items is to make crafting less worrisome. First, you'll craft 1 version until it seems decent. Next, craft the second version until it's better than the first. Then, go back to crafting the first version until it's better than the second, and so on until you get something that's great. This way, you avoid regrets.

    If you don't hit clvl 90 in the Chaos Sanctuary, level here until you do before fighting Diablo. At clvl 90, your CC will activate, granting you access to Symbol of Esu and Chronofield. Moon Symbols are less useful for this build since you have Antimass, but they're vital at times. On the other hand, Chronofield is essential all the time. From here on out, your general attack string will be:
    Chronofield -> Antimass -> Mana Sweep or Immersion.

    Also at clvl 90, bump Familiar to blvl 16 and resummon.

    The 3 Superuniqes are much tougher this time around, especially Ghom. Be careful.

    Diablo is easier than he was in Hatred. He'll drop the Scroll of Fear, telling you about the first Trial in the Black Road Challenge. You're not ready for that yet.

Act 5:

    Elemental attacks from Elites will do decent damage, and the rate at which they spam you will keep you on the defensive. Detonators are still a problem, and Mutilators' indefensible Arcane Torrent will only add to your misery.

    Farm Shenk for 2x Mark of Infusion and hold onto them for now.

    Nihlathak has a guaranteed Signet of Learning drop, as well as guaranteed TU drops, so you can farm him for a few SoL and ACs.

    At clvl 108, bump Familiar up to blvl 20 and resummon.

    Bane Hunters in the Worldstone Keep/Antechamber will drop the final Evil Eye needed to upgrade your Class Charm.

    T-Baal received a DR boost this patch, making him much tougher to kill than last patch. Still, it won't be too hard.



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BUILD

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GEAR

► expand


GAMEPLAY

PRELUDE TO DESTRUCTION (clvl 110-120):

Before moving on to Destruction, do the following in Terror:

1.) Go back through the Acts and pick up any Evil Eyes you may have missed. When you have all 5, cube them with your CC to add +1 Sorc Skills and +20% XP gained.

2.) Run T-Cows until you're clvl 120. As you level, put 22 points into STR, 24 into DEX, and the rest into NRG.

3.) Remake your Honorifics in T6 Leather Gloves and Boots. Socket them with p-res gems and orb them as follows:
  • Gloves:
    5x DEX, 5x NRG, 5x Minion Res, 5x All Res, 4x MF
  • Boots:
    5x STR, 5x DEX, 5x NRG, 5x Minion Res, 4x MF

4.) Uptier your Orb to T6 and your Shield to T5. Socket your Weapon with Um Runes and your Shield with 1x Perfect Emerald, Ruby, Sapphire, and Topaz. Orb them as follows:
  • Orb
    5x MF, 5x Minion Res, 5x Minion Life, 2x FCR
  • Shield
    5x NRG, 5x Minion Res, 5x All Res, 4x MF

5.) Make the following RWs using the Rare jewels you collected and orb them as follows:
  • Oracle
    in T6 Lamellar Armor (remake until you get at least +4 Skills and 40% Max Mana)
    5x NRG, 2x MF
  • Eulenspiegel
    in a T6 Circlet or Coronet
    5x FR/W, 4x All Res
  • Truce
    Truce
    Belts

    'Jah'
    Runeword Level: 80
    5% Combat Speeds
    Stun Attack
    Slows Attacker by 5%
    +(172 to 200)% Enhanced Defense
    Physical Resist 10%
    in a T6 Sash
    5x Minion Res
  • Kabbalah
    Kabbalah
    Sorceress Orbs

    'Cham'
    Runeword Level: 83
    +3 to Sorceress Skill Levels
    -1% Base Block Chance
    60% Hit Recovery
    +(6 to 16) to Divine Apparition
    20% to Energy
    Maximum Life and Mana +5%
    +(100 to 200) Life when Struck by an Enemy
    in a Sacred Jared's Stone (use any 2 jewels with FCR)
    5x FCR

For more info on Base-crafting, see the Crafting section of this guide.

6.) Orb your jewelry with Res and Minion Res if you're short on either.

7.) If you've been running up to now, stop. Walk from here on so your defense kicks in.



DESTRUCTION:

Prologue:

Before doing Ubers in Destruction, make your way through Act 1 and Act 2 up to the Arcane Sanctuary. Do the storyline quests and activate all the Waypoints (you can just Mana Sweep your way through everything). After getting the Dark Tome from the Summoner in the Arcane Sanctuary, cube it with your CC. Activate the Canyon of the Magi Waypoint, then go back to Terror and complete the Black Road Challenge. After which, put a point into Force Blast. Doing this will make going forward much easier (some Ubers won't be doable at this stage without Force Blast).

Act 1:


Act 2:


Act 3:


Act 4:


Act 5:



BITTER WORK:

You won't be fighting Baal until End-Game. To get prepared for the challenges ahead, start by completing the following objectives:

  • Collect any Sacred gear pieces you don't yet have.
  • Have at least 20 Eerie Shrines.
  • Acquire
    Witchhunter's Hood
    Witchhunter's Hood
    Cap (Sacred)

    Defense: (2136 - 2611) to (2161 - 2642)
    Required Level: 90
    Required Strength:
    250
    Item Level: 1
    +(80 to 120)% Enhanced Defense
    10% to Strength
    10% to Dexterity
    Maximum Elemental Resists +2%
    Elemental Resists +(31 to 40)%
    Physical Resist 5%
    (16 to 20)% Bonus to Defense
    Requirements -50%
    Socketed (4)

    Witchhunter's Attire
    (Assassin Claw Set)
    .
  • Acquire an amulet with the Hailstorm oskill and orb it with +CSD.
  • Have 3 Marks of Infusion.
  • Have a minimum of 20 ACs in your Cluster.
  • Have a minimum of 150 SoL eaten.

Farming:

Terror Kurast 3000 B.A.
Your primary farming spot for Eerie Shrines and Set Pieces. You'll get a decent amount of Shrines here, and K3KBA's Set drop bias should net you a few Set pieces per run. With luck, one of them will be
Witchhunter's Hood
Witchhunter's Hood
Cap (Sacred)

Defense: (2136 - 2611) to (2161 - 2642)
Required Level: 90
Required Strength:
250
Item Level: 1
+(80 to 120)% Enhanced Defense
10% to Strength
10% to Dexterity
Maximum Elemental Resists +2%
Elemental Resists +(31 to 40)%
Physical Resist 5%
(16 to 20)% Bonus to Defense
Requirements -50%
Socketed (4)

Witchhunter's Attire
(Assassin Claw Set)
. The rest you can turn into SoL. While you're there, stock up on Perfect Gems for rerolling your Body Armor later. K3KBA is also a decent place to restock jewels if you burn through your supply while jewelcrafting.

Terror Tran Athulua
TA has a Unique drop bias, which makes it a prime farming spot for ACs. Set pieces may also drop there, so you can get some SoL in the process. Since res isn't an issue here, socket your gear with Lum Runes for more MF.

Terror Torajan Jungles
You won't find many Uniques, Sets, or Shrines here, but the Jungles do have a Signet drop bias (Forrest Keepers are especially prone to dropping sigs). Clearing this lace should net you a few Signets of Learning per run.

Crafting Your Gear:

For more info on Shrine-crafting and Jewel-crafting, see the Crafting section of this guide.

Jewels
Using a Lem Rune for the flat Attributes bonus it gives, craft your jewels until you get a total of 9 jewels with the +1% to All Attributes mod. Any additional FCR, FHR, flat Mana, or Res mods are also helpful. If you get any +2% NRG jewels with good mods, hold onto them for now (you can remake your armor later with these jewels after you get more +Attributes Charms). Be sure to cube each crafted jewel you intend to keep with an Oil of Luck.

Body Armor
Remake
Oracle
in Sacred Lamellar Armor using 5 of the +1% Attributes jewels you crafted. Keep rerolling it until you have +4 Skills and at least +45% Max Mana. Orb it with 5x NRG and 2x MF.

Circlet
Remake
Eulenspiegel
in a Sacred Circlet or Coronet using 3 of the +1% Attributes jewels you crafted. Orb it with 5x Minion Res and 4x MF.

Belt
Remake
Truce
Truce
Belts

'Jah'
Runeword Level: 80
5% Combat Speeds
Stun Attack
Slows Attacker by 5%
+(172 to 200)% Enhanced Defense
Physical Resist 10%
in the same T6 Sash using 1 of the +1% Attributes jewels you crafted. Orb it with 5x Minion Res.

War Staff
Use the Eerie Shrines you farmed and craft your Staff. The most important mod is +13 Sorc Skills, but the Avalanche oskill can be a fun alternative to Thunderstone for dealing with Phys-immunes. Any additional FCR, flat Life/Mana, and Minion boosts are helpful. You'll lose a good chunk of Mana from swapping out your TU Orb+Shield. The +Skills will help keep your damage high by increasing the efficiency at which your Feedback skills use the Mana you have, as well as increasing Chronofield's -Enemy Phys Res. It will also give your defense and summons a boost. Bless with an Eerie Shrine. Orb it with 5x MF and 2x Minion Life.

Scepter
Don't waste Eerie Shrines on this. Any random Shrines will do. +16 to Psionic Storm is the only mod you're looking for (but some FCR would be nice). It's damage is based entirely on Base NRG, so it will be pathetic right now. But you only need it for 1 thing.

Gloves and Boots
Remake your Honorifics...again. Socket them with Perfect Res Gems and orb them each with 5x STR, 5x DEX, 5x NRG, 5x Minion Res, and 4x MF.

Adjust Stat Points:

You'll need more points into STR+DEX to wear your new gear. The amount will vary depending on the +Attributes rolls on the Charms you got and the +Attributes rolls on the jewels you crafted. Your Honorifics should take care of your STR needs, so equip all your gear except your jewelry, Body Armor, and Circlet. Next, equip Witchhunter's Hood. Then, put just enough points into DEX to wear your Body Armor. This will allow you to swap out any gear pieces when you need to without having to respec each time. All remaining points can go to NRG.

After respeccing and equipping your new gear, use res MOs on your jewelry to make up where you may be lacking.



Image



BUILD

► expand


GEAR

► MAIN SETUP


► ALTERNATE SETUP - For Some Uber Bosses


► OTHER GEAR


GAMEPLAY

Part I:


Part II:

    SU Farming
    You're main farming spots will be TA and the town part of Duncraig (you can venture into the main area of the Corrupted Abbey, but anything beyond that is inefficient). While you're in TA, farm for a +15% Max Life/Mana version of the Charm and the Trophy.

    You're not strong enough yet to just faceroll these places (and you'll never be strong enough to faceroll Dunc because you'll never have access to timerless teleport), but you're tanky enough and have enough damage that you can Mana Sweep through at a decent pace. And the more SoL you eat, the faster you'll clear them. Since you won't be able to socket your Honorifics with Lum Runes (lvl req will be too high), socket them with P-Topazes for more damage and your Staff with Lum Runes. You'll only have about 200% MF (not counting any from jewelry), so grab a merc. An Abjurer's tankiness and higer killspeed can serve you better in TA than your Priestess' buffs, but no merc will survive Dunc because instagibs. Make sure to unequip your Rogue's gear beforehand if you switch mercs, just in case you want to rehire her later.

    Right now, you're mostly looking for
    Royal Circlet
    Royal Circlet
    Tiara (Sacred)

    Defense: (1740 - 1957) to (1968 - 2214)
    Required Level: 100
    Required Dexterity: 392
    Item Level: 105
    +2 to All Skills
    +50% Damage to Demons
    +50% Damage to Undead
    +(140 to 170)% Enhanced Defense
    (21 to 25)% to All Attributes
    Elemental Resists +(25 to 30)%
    Physical Resist 5%
    (21 to 25)% Magic Find
    Socketed (4)
    ,
    Sash of Shadows
    , and
    Lamha Na Draoithe
    Lamha Na Draoithe
    Gauntlets (Sacred)

    Defense: (1339 - 1506) to (1567 - 1763)
    Required Level: 100
    Required Strength: 625
    Item Level: 120
    +2 to All Skills
    +150 Spell Focus
    30% Cast Speed
    +(16 to 20)% to Spell Damage
    +(140 to 170)% Enhanced Defense
    +75 to Strength
    -100 to Life
    Elemental Resists +15%
    Socketed (4)
    , as well as any spare SUs/Sets you can turn into SoL. Also keep turning TUs into ACs. Use them with the Unique item creation recipe to make 2x
    Empyrean Band
    Empyrean Band
    Ring

    Required Level: 40
    Item Level: 40
    1% Chance to cast level 18 Singularity on Kill
    (3 to 5)% to All Attributes
    Maximum Life +3%
    Maximum Mana +10%
    (5 to 15)% Gold Find
    with +5% All Attributes, and 1x
    Teganze Pendant
    Teganze Pendant
    Amulet

    Required Level: 60
    Item Level: 70
    +1 to All Skills
    +10% to Fire Spell Damage
    +10% to Lightning Spell Damage
    +10% to Cold Spell Damage
    Maximum Life +(3 to 5)%
    Maximum Mana +(20 to 30)%
    Elemental Resists +10%
    +(13 to 38) Mana after each Kill
    (ideally, a +30% Max Mana version, but you can get by with a lower value). Use an Oil of Luck on the Teganze Pendant, but cube the Empyrean Bands with low-roll Spirit Trance Herbs for a chance a +1 Skills.

    SoL Farming
    When you get frustrated with the lack of drops in TA and Dunc's instagibs, go back to the Torajan Jungles and do more SoL farming. While you're there, farm for 3x Signets of Skill and Akarat's Trophy. Throw in some K3KBA runs to break up the tedium (and for Sets) and some Nihlathak runs just for good measure (Nihlathak may also drop SUs). SoL are more important than gear for this build, and you'll want all 500 SoL eaten before moving forward.

    Note:
    You can eat every SoL as soon as you get it, but leave 50 Attribute Points unallocated. You'll need more points into STR/DEX to counter the effects of the Trader's Chest you'll later get from Terul in Teganze. Once you've crafted a Trader's Chest you're satisfied with, unequip your gear, look at where your STR/DEX is deficient, then use those Attribute points to make up for those deficiencies. The rest can go to NRG.

    Also, be sure to have enough points into STR/DEX to wear your gear while wearing only 1 Empyrean Band. This will reduce the need to respec just to adjust Stat points for Purify Ubers.

Part III:


Epilogue:

The following Ubers are still out-of-date. When they're done, they'll be moved to an appropriate place in the list.


The following Ubers will remain incomplete (reasons are given in their respective sections).

Edited by Solfege 5 years.
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For this guide, Uberquests are grouped into 3 tiers, and are ranked depending on gear requirements, number of Signets of Learning needed, and the amount of strategy/player skill necessary to complete them. They are listed in Documentation order.

Easy
  • Gear: Combination of Early and Mid-Game gear
  • Signets of Learning: 0
  • Strategy/Player Skill: Low

Medium
  • Gear: Mid-Game gear, with some End-Game upgrades recommended
  • Signets of Learning: 150-300 recommended
  • Strategy/Player Skill: Medium

Hard
  • Gear: Full End-Game or other specific gear
  • Signets of Learning: 500 recommended
  • Strategy/Player Skill: High

This symbol indicates an Uberquest has a corresponding Trophy.



KHEJISTAN

Death Projector
► More info


Horazon's Sanctum
► more info


The Torajan Jungles
► More Info


Kurast 3000 B.A.
► More Info


Akarat
► more info


Rathma Square
► more info


Heart of Sin
► more info


Legacy of Blood
► more info


Lord Aldric Jitan
► more info


Teganze
► more info


Quov Tsin
► more info


Viz-jun
► more info


Kingdom of Shadow
► more info


The Triune
► more info


Toraja
► more info


Yshari Sanctum (Out of Date)
► more info


Astrogha
► expand



WESTERN KINGDOMS

Horror Under Tristram
► More Info


Infernal Machine
► More Info


The Binding of Baal
► more info


Assault on Mount Arreat
► more info


Island of the Sunless Sea
► more info


Cathedral of Light
► more info


Tran Athulua
► more info


Bull Prince Rodeo
► more info


Eve of Destruction
► more info


Ghosts of Old Bremmtown
► more info
Edited by Solfege 6 years.
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Judgment Day
► more info


Athulua
► more info


Fauztinville
► more info


Xazax
► more info


Duncraig
► more info


Nephalem's Sacrifice (Out of Date)
► more info



WASTELANDS

Khalimgrad
► more info


Lord of Lies
► more info


The Black Road
► more info


Spirit World
► more info


World Nexus
► more info


Archbishop Lazarus
► more info


The Void
► More Info



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LEVEL CHALLENGE 1

► More Info


ENNEAD CHALLENGE

► More Info


LEVEL CHALLENGE 2

► More Info


THE BLACK ROAD CHALLENGE

Reward:
+150 Life/Mana added to your CC
Unlocks your BRC skill

    Trial of Fear
    ► expand


    Trial of Greed
    ► expand


    Trial of Contrition
    ► expand


    Trial of Knowledge
    ► expand


    Trial of Blood
    ► expand


    Completing the Challenge
    ► expand



Image



JEWEL-CRAFTING

► More Info


SHRINE-CRAFTING

► More Info


BASE-CRAFTING FOR RUNEWORDS

► More Info



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  • The entire MXL team.
  • Blizzard North (may you RIP).
  • All the people who keep the forum running, maintain the documentation, and host servers.
  • Suchbalance and LH specifically for being valuable sources of information.

Thanks for reading!

If you have any questions, comments, or suggestions related specifically to this guide, feel free to PM me here on the forum.
Edited by Solfege 6 years.
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Typo in Part 1 of Uldy Baal section: "b when he does use his spells"

For Stage 19 there, have you tried Dark Summoning in the center again? Sometimes that does the trick to set off the Tomb Guard tremor and disappearance. I wouldn't rely on Spin to Win, since that was supposed to be fixed a few patches ago.

Just skimmed through so far, but good to see this new guide. Keep it up.

Edit: Have you tried the circle method for Valthek yet? Or unfamiliar with it?
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L H wrote:Typo in Part 1 of Uldy Baal section: "b when he does use his spells"

For Stage 19 there, have you tried Dark Summoning in the center again? Sometimes that does the trick to set off the Tomb Guard tremor and disappearance. I wouldn't rely on Spin to Win, since that was supposed to be fixed a few patches ago.

Just skimmed through so far, but good to see this new guide. Keep it up.

Edit: Have you tried the circle method for Valthek yet? Or unfamiliar with it?


Ty. Fixed.

I have tried the Dark Summoning thing (a lot), but it's never worked for me. Spin to Win is a bullshit method, but it's the only way I've been able to get through as a caster (can do with fully-geared melee spec though, for some reason). I still have no idea how that Stage is supposed to work.

IDK what the circle method for Valthek is. Letting him chase me up and down 1 side of the area has always worked pretty well. So never bothered looking for another way.

Edit:
Updated Uldy Stage 19. Got it to work w/o Spin to Win. Kill Invaders before they can use Burn Nova -> Purify Mahasattva.
Edited by Solfege 6 years.
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Solfege wrote:IDK what the circle method for Valthek is. Letting him chase me up and down 1 side of the area has always worked pretty well. So never bothered looking for another way.


Perhaps you'll find this easier (also link here for the chaos season community challenge that shows a demonstration of the method):

viewtopic.php?p=85732#p85732

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A small correction about minion resistance: minion res is not capped, what is capped is the free res you get for 5 levels (75%) and the stat "minion resistance" on items/skills (75%). So on Hatred & Terror you can have minions which are immune to elemental damage.

Chronofield: this skill does NOT reduce enemy physical resist at all right now, due to some unforeseen D2 shenanigans. So the arcane tree is doing less damage than intended, which will be remedied soon.
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@LH
Ty. Will try. If I like that method better, I'll rewrite the Valthek section and credit you accordingly.

@SB
Ty. This is important info. Minion res section corrected (hopefully its right this time). Regarding Chronofield, I remember you writing something like this before, but I misinterpreted it as Chronofield not breaking immunities. That's my fault. Think I corrected all the references to Physical pierce as they relate to Chonofield and made notes in the guide of its current status.

Will cookie both posts when I can.
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Finally another caster sorc guide! Well written as usual, really gives me hope for Fire sorc.
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Just want to say awesome guide! I switched from a 41 melee sorc to this build and so far i like it a lot. Knocked out lc1 with no problems or deaths. Cant wait to see how she is in end game.