Requirements
SurvivabilityThis is my top priority, if I die I waste my time and XP. This build achieves this with the following:
- 300+ all resist with Fade (1)
- 4k+ life buffed
- 39% physical damage reduction / 50% DR with Fade
- Max block 75%
- Life Tap x3 (3x Last Wish that can proc)
Speed
I’m all about getting it done quickly. A run will usually take 3 minutes or less from the time I open the portals to when I pick up the new torch.
- 95% crushing blow
- Max Smite frames of 6 frames (PB + lvl 32 Fanaticism + 15 IAS jewel)
- Teleport with 75 faster cast rate on secondary weapon set
- Vigor to run faster
- In most cases, Fade will trigger before I get to the uber bosses so I have max res for Meph. Else, I’ll go to Act 4 and trigger it with the fire.
- Double might from merc makes me Smite harder
- I have enough str where I can Teleport and grab my torch even after taking off my current torch
- Don’t need to change auras for Meph. I’m always on Fanaticism unless in town and I use Vigor there.
- Only need to swap 1 piece of gear - the Helm from Circlet (75 fcr) to CoA (max res) when doing Uber bosses
- I don’t need a merc for this build but it’s helpful to have as it’ll improve the likelihood of LT proc’ing and make the run a little faster with double might buffing me.
Gear
Weapon: Last Wish in Phase Blade Weapon Swap: Call To Arms and Spirit- Need 35 fcr on that Spirit to hit 75
- +skills
- str/vit
- Easy to hit max block
- 50 all res
- 8 dmg reduction with Ber
- Skills
- Tons of str
- Teleport
- Dmg reduction
- Faster run
- 2 pally skills / 20 fcr Circlet with 15 IAS jewel + Ber (mini Ubers)
- Crown of Ages with 15 IAS/all res jewel and another jewel with all res (Ubers)
- Str
- CB
- ED for more Smite damage
- CB
- Run walk
- DR 15%
- Tons of vit
- Cannot be frozen
- Dex
- 10 fcr
- all res
- 2 pally skills
- 10 fcr
Charm 2: Annihilus
Charm 3: +1 combat / life grand charms
Charm 4: 5 all res / life small charms
Overall, I like how smooth this build feels. It’s very predictable now - even if I get hit hard a couple times in a row, my life doesn’t drop so quick I can’t use a pot like it had happened before. With that said, it’s rare to have to use a pot unless I don’t have my merc and LT doesn’t proc right at the start of an encounter. Except for mana pots, I use those often.
Variants
Grief- I’ve tried this in the past with other builds, and it always seemed to be slower clear speeds
- My goal #1 of survivability has made the Act 5 merc a winner with 2x LW for Life Tap procs. Double might to hit harder is a bonus. And even though these two are nice, I still can run without a merc and be perfectly fine.
- This is the only one I’m on the fence about. I’ve tried many runs using a Eth vortex with 45@ Exile and yes my defense is much greater making it less likely I’ll get hit by mobs by (I forgot exactly but can check) 6-7% but when I get hit, I get hit harder it seems. The other problem I have is I rely on Fade for Meph and since I get hit less, Fade procs less often which means I end up in the Act IV fire pit more often slowing down my run.
- I’ve tried both of these many times and in the end, survivability of Teleport and speed of Teleport plus all the str I get from Enigma just seems better for me than maybe doing a little more damage which didn’t seem very noticeable to me in my tests.
- With max res this hasn't felt necessary and the benefits I get from verdungo's seem better
Closing Thoughts
But why you ask? Sure, you could make a successful uber smiter with a fraction of the cost and clear speeds wouldn’t be that much different. Well, I do this because it is what keeps the game fun for me. To keep tweaking and trying to get slight improvements where I can.Let me know if you have questions or comments, agree/disagree. I welcome the conversation!
Footnotes
(1) Using CoA on Uber Bosses for max resistances of 300
(2) Using Circlet for 75 fcr in mini-Ubers to get around faster
azeroti
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