Explosive Arrow Elementalist Damage Comprehensive Path Of Exile Build Guide
Introduction to Explosive Arrow Elementalist in Path of Exile
The Explosive Arrow Elementalist is a popular and powerful build in Path of Exile, known for its impressive area of effect (AoE) damage and ability to clear maps quickly. This build centers around the Explosive Arrow skill, which, when combined with the Elementalist Ascendancy, can unleash devastating elemental damage. If you're looking to maximize your damage and optimize your build, this comprehensive guide will provide you with the insights and strategies you need. We'll delve into the core mechanics of the build, gear selection, passive skill tree allocation, gem setups, and advanced techniques to ensure your Explosive Arrow Elementalist is a force to be reckoned with in Wraeclast.
Core Mechanics of the Explosive Arrow Build
At its heart, the Explosive Arrow build functions by stacking multiple Explosive Arrow debuffs on enemies, which then detonate simultaneously for massive damage. The Elementalist Ascendancy plays a crucial role here, particularly the Shaper of Flames node, which converts a significant portion of your physical and lightning damage to fire damage, and the Mastermind of Fire node, which provides ignite proliferation and additional fire damage. Understanding these core mechanics is essential for scaling your damage effectively.
Key to the success of an Explosive Arrow build is the stacking mechanic. Each arrow that hits an enemy applies an Explosive Arrow debuff. The more debuffs you can apply before they detonate, the higher your damage output will be. This is why attack speed and the number of arrows fired are critical stats for this build. Furthermore, the Elementalist Ascendancy's Shaper of Flames node ensures that even non-fire damage sources contribute to your fire damage, enhancing the build's versatility and damage potential.
Another vital aspect is the ignite proliferation from the Mastermind of Fire node. Ignite is a powerful damage-over-time effect, and proliferating it to nearby enemies significantly boosts your clear speed. By understanding and optimizing these core mechanics, you can ensure your Explosive Arrow Elementalist deals consistent and substantial damage in various scenarios.
The Role of the Elementalist Ascendancy
The Elementalist Ascendancy is the cornerstone of this build, providing critical bonuses to elemental damage and area of effect. The Shaper of Flames node converts a significant portion of your damage to fire, which is crucial for scaling ignite damage. The Mastermind of Fire node offers ignite proliferation, enhancing your clear speed by spreading ignites to nearby enemies. Additionally, the Pendulum of Destruction node provides alternating boosts to area of effect and elemental damage, further amplifying your damage output. The Beacon of Ruin node applies elemental ailments to enemies, increasing the damage they take.
Shaper of Flames is particularly impactful as it ensures that virtually all damage sources contribute to the fire damage component of Explosive Arrow. This allows you to scale your damage from multiple sources, including physical, lightning, and even chaos damage, as long as they are converted to fire. The conversion mechanic essentially consolidates your damage into a single, easily scalable element.
Mastermind of Fire's ignite proliferation is invaluable for clearing packs of enemies. By igniting one enemy, you can effectively ignite the entire pack, turning your single-target damage into formidable AoE damage. This significantly speeds up your map clear times and makes the build more efficient for farming.
Pendulum of Destruction offers a dynamic damage boost, alternating between increased area of effect and increased elemental damage. This node enhances both your clear speed and boss damage, providing a well-rounded boost to your overall performance. Finally, Beacon of Ruin ensures that enemies are consistently afflicted with elemental ailments, which further amplify the damage they take from your ignites and other fire-based damage sources.
Optimizing Gear for Explosive Arrow Elementalist
Selecting the right gear is paramount to the success of any Path of Exile build, and the Explosive Arrow Elementalist is no exception. Prioritizing specific stats and affixes can significantly boost your damage output, survivability, and overall build efficiency. In this section, we'll discuss the key gear pieces and stats you should be targeting to maximize your build's potential.
Key Weapon Stats
A high physical damage bow is the foundation of your damage output. Look for bows with a high damage per second (DPS) rating, as this will directly impact the base damage of your Explosive Arrow. Attack speed is also crucial, as it determines how quickly you can stack Explosive Arrow debuffs on enemies. Other desirable stats include critical strike chance, critical strike multiplier, and elemental damage with attacks.
The bow is your primary damage source, and thus, investing in a quality bow is essential. Look for bows with a high base physical damage, as this will be the primary driver of your fire damage conversion through the Shaper of Flames Ascendancy node. A bow with high attack speed allows you to apply more Explosive Arrow stacks quickly, which is crucial for maximizing your damage output. Furthermore, critical strike chance and multiplier can significantly boost your damage, especially when combined with the Elemental Overload keystone or other critical strike-related passives.
In addition to these primary stats, consider looking for bows with additional elemental damage or modifiers that increase the damage of ailments, such as ignite. These can provide a significant boost to your overall damage output. Unique bows like The Tempest's Binding can also be excellent choices, offering a combination of high damage and useful modifiers, such as increased elemental damage and attack speed.
Essential Armor and Jewelry Affixes
For armor, prioritize life, resistances, and elemental damage. A chest piece with a high life roll and elemental resistances is crucial for survivability. On other armor pieces, look for affixes that increase your fire damage, such as '+% to Fire Damage' or '+% to Damage over Time Multiplier'. Jewelry slots are excellent for filling in any missing resistances and providing additional damage stats such as '+% to Fire Damage' and '+% to Projectile Damage'.
Life and resistances are your primary defensive layers, and ensuring you have adequate amounts of both is crucial for surviving the challenging content in Path of Exile. Aim to cap your elemental resistances (75%) and maintain a healthy life pool. A chest piece with a high life roll and elemental resistances is an excellent starting point for your defensive setup. On other armor pieces, look for affixes that boost your damage, such as '+% to Fire Damage' and '+% to Damage over Time Multiplier'.
Jewelry slots are incredibly versatile and can be used to address any gaps in your build. Amulets and rings can provide additional resistances, life, and damage stats. Look for affixes such as '+% to Fire Damage', '+% to Projectile Damage', and '+% to Damage over Time Multiplier' to further enhance your damage output. Amulets can also roll with powerful anointments, such as Charisma or Heart of Flame, which can significantly improve your build's performance. Rings can also be used to address mana sustain issues through affixes like '+ Mana gained on Hit' or '+% increased Mana Regeneration'.
Unique Items to Consider
Several unique items can significantly enhance your Explosive Arrow Elementalist build. Quiver such as Drillneck and Hyrri's Quiver are popular choices for their damage boosts. The Chin Sol bow can provide a massive damage boost against enemies at close range. Devouring Diadem helmet can help with mana sustain and provide additional damage. Belly of the Beast chest armor offers a significant life boost. Experiment with different unique items to find the best combination for your build and playstyle.
Quivers are particularly impactful for an Explosive Arrow build. Drillneck is a popular choice due to its '+% increased Projectile Damage' and '+% increased Damage with Piercing Projectiles' modifiers, which can significantly boost your damage output. Hyrri's Quiver is another excellent option, providing '+% increased Attack Speed' and '+% increased Critical Strike Chance', which synergize well with the build's core mechanics. Other notable quivers include Viper's Draw and The Signal Fire, each offering unique benefits to the build.
The Chin Sol bow is a unique option that provides a massive damage boost against enemies at close range. This can be a powerful tool for boss encounters, where you can position yourself strategically to maximize the bow's effect. However, it requires a specific playstyle and may not be suitable for all players. The Devouring Diadem helmet is a valuable item for addressing mana sustain issues, providing '+% increased Mana Reservation Efficiency' and '+% increased Mana Regeneration'. It also offers a notable damage boost through its '+% increased Damage' modifier. Belly of the Beast is a popular chest armor choice for its significant life boost, providing a substantial increase to your overall survivability.
Passive Skill Tree Optimization
The passive skill tree is where you fine-tune your build to maximize damage, survivability, and efficiency. For an Explosive Arrow Elementalist, you'll want to prioritize nodes that increase fire damage, projectile damage, damage over time, and life. Mana sustain is also crucial, so consider picking up nodes that increase mana regeneration or reduce mana cost. Let's break down the key sections of the passive tree and the nodes you should prioritize.
Core Passive Clusters
Start by pathing towards the Fire Damage and Projectile Damage clusters near the Witch starting area. These nodes provide significant damage boosts early on. Next, move towards the Damage over Time nodes near the Shadow and Ranger areas. These nodes will amplify your ignite damage, which is a core component of the build. Don't neglect life nodes, as survivability is crucial. The Life clusters near the Templar and Marauder areas are excellent choices.
In the Witch starting area, prioritize nodes such as Heart of Flame and Breath of Flames, which provide significant increases to fire damage and ignite damage. The Projectile Damage cluster near the Witch area is also a crucial pickup, as it directly amplifies the damage of your Explosive Arrows. Early investment in these nodes will provide a substantial boost to your damage output.
As you progress through the passive tree, path towards the Damage over Time nodes located near the Shadow and Ranger areas. Nodes such as Burning Brutality and Fireslinger are essential for scaling your ignite damage, which is a core component of the build. These nodes provide a multiplicative damage boost to your ignites, significantly increasing your overall damage output. Survivability is paramount in Path of Exile, so don't neglect the Life clusters near the Templar and Marauder areas. Nodes such as Constitution and Devotion provide substantial increases to your life pool, improving your survivability in challenging content.
Keystone Passives
Elemental Overload is a popular keystone choice, providing a significant damage boost if you can consistently crit. Acrobatics and Phase Acrobatics can enhance your survivability by increasing your dodge chance. Charisma can help with mana reservation, allowing you to run more auras. Consider these keystones based on your playstyle and gear availability.
Elemental Overload is a powerful keystone that provides a significant damage boost if you can consistently crit. This keystone eliminates the need to invest heavily in critical strike multiplier, allowing you to focus on other damage stats. However, it requires you to maintain a consistent critical strike chance, so ensure you have adequate crit chance on your gear and passive tree.
Acrobatics and Phase Acrobatics are excellent defensive keystones that significantly increase your dodge chance. These keystones can make you much more resilient to incoming attacks, especially physical damage. However, they come with the downside of reducing your armor and energy shield, so consider your overall defensive setup before taking these keystones. Charisma is a valuable keystone for mana reservation, allowing you to run more auras. Auras provide significant buffs to your damage and defenses, so maximizing the number of auras you can run is crucial for optimizing your build. This keystone can be particularly useful if you are struggling to fit all the auras you want into your mana reservation.
Mana Sustain Nodes
Mana sustain is often a challenge for Explosive Arrow builds. Look for nodes that increase mana regeneration, reduce mana cost, or grant mana on hit. The Arcane Focus cluster near the Witch starting area is a good option. Consider using a mana flask or the Clarity aura to further mitigate mana issues.
Mana sustain is a common challenge for many builds in Path of Exile, and the Explosive Arrow Elementalist is no exception. Sustaining your mana can be tricky, especially during prolonged fights or while clearing dense packs of enemies. There are several strategies you can employ to address mana sustain issues, including investing in mana regeneration, reducing mana costs, and utilizing mana flasks or auras.
Arcane Focus near the Witch starting area is a cluster of nodes that provides a significant boost to mana regeneration. This cluster can be a valuable investment, especially early in the game when you may not have access to other mana sustain options. Reducing the mana cost of your skills is another effective way to improve mana sustain. You can achieve this through various means, including passive skills, gear affixes, and support gems such as Inspiration Support. Lowering your mana costs can significantly reduce the strain on your mana pool, allowing you to cast more skills without running out of mana.
Gem Setups for Maximum Damage
The gems you use in your skill slots are critical for optimizing your Explosive Arrow Elementalist build. The right gem combinations can significantly boost your damage, clear speed, and survivability. In this section, we'll break down the optimal gem setups for your main skill, support skills, auras, and utility skills.
Main Skill Setup
The core of your build is the Explosive Arrow skill gem. Link it with support gems that enhance its damage output, such as Burning Damage, Ignite Proliferation, Elemental Damage with Attacks, Fire Penetration, and Concentrated Effect or Increased Area of Effect. The choice between Concentrated Effect and Increased Area of Effect depends on your preference for single-target damage versus area of effect.
The Explosive Arrow skill gem is the heart of your build, and selecting the right support gems is crucial for maximizing its damage potential. Burning Damage Support is a staple gem for any ignite-based build, providing a significant boost to your ignite damage. This gem synergizes perfectly with the Explosive Arrow's ability to inflict powerful ignites.
Ignite Proliferation Support is another essential gem for this build, as it allows your ignites to spread to nearby enemies. This dramatically improves your clear speed, as you can ignite entire packs of enemies with a single shot. Elemental Damage with Attacks Support provides a flat damage boost to your Explosive Arrows, further enhancing your overall damage output. Fire Penetration Support is crucial for overcoming enemy fire resistance, ensuring your ignites deal full damage. This gem is particularly important for boss encounters and high-level content, where enemies often have high fire resistance.
The choice between Concentrated Effect Support and Increased Area of Effect Support depends on your playstyle and priorities. Concentrated Effect Support reduces the area of effect of your Explosive Arrow but significantly increases its damage. This gem is ideal for boss encounters and situations where you need to focus on single-target damage. Increased Area of Effect Support, on the other hand, increases the area of effect of your Explosive Arrow, making it more effective for clearing packs of enemies. This gem is a great choice for mapping and general content clearing.
Auras and Utility Skills
Auras provide significant buffs to your character. Anger and Malevolence are excellent choices for damage, while Grace can enhance your evasion. Flame Dash is a great movement skill for traversing maps quickly. Consider using a utility skill like Decoy Totem to draw enemy aggro.
Auras are a critical component of any Path of Exile build, providing significant buffs to your character's damage, defenses, and utility. For an Explosive Arrow Elementalist, selecting the right auras can dramatically improve your build's performance. Anger is a powerful aura that provides a flat fire damage boost to your attacks. This aura synergizes perfectly with the Explosive Arrow's fire damage focus, significantly increasing your overall damage output. Malevolence is another excellent aura choice, providing a damage-over-time multiplier. This aura enhances your ignite damage, further boosting your single-target and clear speed.
Grace is a defensive aura that increases your evasion rating. Evasion is a crucial defensive layer for many builds, and Grace can significantly improve your survivability, especially against physical damage. In addition to auras, utility skills are essential for enhancing your build's functionality and playstyle. Flame Dash is a popular movement skill that allows you to quickly traverse maps and reposition yourself in combat. This skill is invaluable for both clearing content and navigating challenging encounters.
Decoy Totem is a utility skill that summons a totem that draws enemy aggro. This can be a lifesaver in difficult situations, allowing you to safely apply Explosive Arrow stacks without taking damage. Other utility skills to consider include Steelskin for additional defense and Arcane Surge Support for increased mana regeneration and spell damage.
Advanced Techniques and Tips
Mastering the Explosive Arrow Elementalist build requires more than just optimizing gear and passive skills. Advanced techniques, such as strategic positioning, efficient flask usage, and understanding enemy mechanics, can significantly improve your performance. In this section, we'll delve into these advanced techniques to help you take your build to the next level.
Strategic Positioning and Movement
Positioning is crucial for maximizing your damage output and survivability. Stay at a safe distance from enemies to avoid taking damage, and use movement skills like Flame Dash to reposition quickly. Against bosses, try to maintain a close-to-medium range to maximize the damage from the Chin Sol bow, if you're using it.
Strategic positioning is a fundamental aspect of gameplay in Path of Exile, and it is particularly important for ranged builds like the Explosive Arrow Elementalist. Maintaining a safe distance from enemies allows you to avoid taking damage while still dealing consistent damage with your Explosive Arrows. Utilizing movement skills such as Flame Dash is crucial for repositioning quickly and evading incoming attacks. This skill provides both mobility and survivability, allowing you to navigate challenging encounters with ease. Against bosses, positioning can be even more critical. If you are using the Chin Sol bow, maintaining a close-to-medium range is essential for maximizing its damage bonus. This requires careful positioning and awareness of the boss's attack patterns.
Efficient Flask Usage
Flasks are a vital resource for survivability and damage. Use life flasks to recover health quickly, and utility flasks like Quicksilver and Granite flasks to enhance your movement speed and defenses. Consider using a Ruby Flask to mitigate fire damage, especially against fire-based bosses. Ensure your flasks have useful modifiers, such as '+% increased Life Recovery' or '+% increased Movement Speed'.
Flasks are a vital resource in Path of Exile, providing significant boosts to your survivability, damage, and utility. Efficient flask usage is crucial for maximizing your build's potential, especially in challenging content. Life flasks are essential for recovering health quickly, and you should always have a life flask equipped on your character. Look for life flasks with useful modifiers, such as '+% increased Life Recovery' or '+ Life Recovery per second', to enhance their effectiveness. Utility flasks, such as Quicksilver Flasks and Granite Flasks, provide significant boosts to your movement speed and defenses, respectively. Quicksilver Flasks are invaluable for clearing maps quickly and navigating challenging encounters, while Granite Flasks provide a substantial armor boost, reducing the amount of physical damage you take.
Consider using a Ruby Flask to mitigate fire damage, especially against fire-based bosses or in areas with high fire damage. Ruby Flasks provide a significant boost to your fire resistance, reducing the amount of fire damage you take. Ensuring your flasks have useful modifiers is crucial for maximizing their effectiveness. Look for modifiers such as '+% increased Duration', '+% increased Effect', and '+ Charges gained' to enhance your flasks' performance. Flask management is an essential skill in Path of Exile, and mastering it can significantly improve your survivability and overall gameplay experience.
Understanding Enemy Mechanics
Knowing enemy attack patterns and elemental resistances can help you optimize your damage and survivability. Use skills like Scout to gain information about enemies, and adjust your gem setups and flask usage accordingly. Be aware of bosses with high fire resistance, and consider using the Fire Penetration Support gem or other resistance-penetration mechanics.
Understanding enemy mechanics is a crucial aspect of mastering any Path of Exile build, and the Explosive Arrow Elementalist is no exception. Knowing enemy attack patterns and elemental resistances allows you to optimize your damage output and survivability, ensuring you can handle a wide range of encounters. Utilizing skills like Scout or other information-gathering abilities can provide valuable insights into enemy weaknesses and strengths. This allows you to tailor your gem setups and flask usage to the specific challenges you face.
Being aware of bosses with high fire resistance is particularly important for the Explosive Arrow Elementalist, as fire damage is the core of the build. In such cases, using the Fire Penetration Support gem or other resistance-penetration mechanics is essential for ensuring your ignites deal full damage. Additionally, understanding enemy attack patterns allows you to position yourself strategically and avoid taking unnecessary damage. Learning to recognize telegraphs and cues for enemy attacks is a key skill for any Path of Exile player.
By understanding enemy mechanics, you can adapt your playstyle and gear choices to maximize your effectiveness in any situation. This knowledge is invaluable for tackling challenging content and pushing your build to its limits.
Conclusion: Mastering the Explosive Arrow Elementalist
The Explosive Arrow Elementalist is a potent build capable of clearing maps quickly and dealing substantial damage to bosses. By understanding the core mechanics, optimizing your gear and passive skill tree, and mastering advanced techniques, you can create a formidable character that excels in Path of Exile. Remember to continuously refine your build based on your experiences and the challenges you face. With dedication and practice, you'll be unleashing explosive damage in no time.
This comprehensive guide has covered the essential aspects of building and optimizing an Explosive Arrow Elementalist in Path of Exile. From understanding the core mechanics and the role of the Elementalist Ascendancy to optimizing gear, passive skills, and gem setups, we've provided you with the knowledge and strategies you need to succeed. However, mastering this build requires more than just theoretical knowledge; it requires practice, experimentation, and a willingness to adapt to the challenges you encounter. Remember to continuously refine your build based on your experiences and the content you are tackling. Path of Exile is a game of constant learning and adaptation, and the more you experiment and refine your build, the more powerful you will become. With dedication and practice, you will be unleashing devastating explosive damage and dominating Wraeclast in no time. The journey to mastering the Explosive Arrow Elementalist is an ongoing process, but with the right knowledge and dedication, you can create a build that is both powerful and enjoyable to play.
