Sorc blizz/orb

Hi,

I'm running a blizzard/orb sorc as I did 20 years ago. I'm having trouble desciding what to equip it with, as to now the forb is my main skill.
Currently I have

Shako, lidless, skin of viper, and hoto. I'm considering to change to coh/Enigma, shield for Spirit and

Shako for nightwing. However, now there are some nice unique jewels from ancients to socket the

Shako, viper and lidless with. Say I socket my

Shako, viper and lidless with a cold jewel. How would this compare to equiping the runewords? I mostly see guides recommend the runewords but this will be of the cost of increased dmg. What do you think?

Also, how are the single uber bosses (the ones from keys) managable with a cold sorc? I know

Tristram is a no-go

Also, I consider respecking it to something else I have never tried like lightning

I believe you can only equip one of the new jewels at a time , so possibly the viper for more damage.

There are several ways to build a cold sorc, not only one.

Between Cold and Lightning that's a matter of preference : lightning is quicker but more glass cannon in most uses, cold is in general cheaper to build up to a very functional use.

As for the rest, if you want something super perfect, cas84's advice is certainly good, but expensive, you may also prefer something full mf or full efficiency or more an allrounder... options are numerous.

Blizz / Orb can still work, for example.

Let us know your way to play and we can answer better

Also, let us know what charms you already own, how much "effort" and rune value you want to put into making the build better.

Finally, for mini Ubers,

Duriel and

Izual should be fine if well geared.

Lilith is way stronger though - usually better build a dedicated, even cheap Pally for Ubers works better.

Personally I think

Frozen Orb is an awesome skill. I've always found it to be one of the most visually satisfying skills to watch in the game. Is it stronger than blizzard, no? Is it arguably cooler looking and a more active playstyle, I would say yes. I made a

Frozen Orb/

Meteor+

Fireball build and I really enjoyed it. You really don't need Infinity or a sunder to make it work initially. Obviously having those things would make it even stronger.

I believe my build used:

Death's Fathom/HOTO
Spirit shield

Ormus Robe with high cold percent (preferably with a + to skills that is helpful for your build)
Viper Magi is also super solid

Shako for MF or Nightwing for damage. I personally like the look of the nightwing on a sorc, it looks ridiculous, lol

The rest of the gear is pretty open to what you have available. Looking to get as much +to skills as possible along with as much cold amp as possible. Another option I have toyed around with was Doom, which, I feel, isn't talked about enough with a cold sorc. With its massive penetration to cold (40-60) it can really help with going against Ice immunes if you don't have a sunder/Infinity. The only downside is that it does not have FCR on it but you can make up for that elsewhere in the build and achieve breakpoints. Additionally it is a bit expensive to craft for some. Definitely worth considering if you are looking or something different.

Light sorceress is super fun as well but without sunder/Infinity it can be a bit limited in terms of what it can run effectively. Most people that run this spec that don't have the aforementioned items typically target farm specific areas that are free from light immunes. Much like using Doom on a cold spec,

Crescent Moon can be a good option and isn't super expensive. When you get your sunder/Infinity it can help to deal significantly more damage to light immunes once their immunity is broken due to the high lightning pen it has on it (-35 I believe, which is guaranteed). I think overall it is a pretty big bang for your buck in terms of what it costs versus what it provides. If you were able to find a

Griffon's Eye that would make this build even more potent.

Overall, I would say play what makes you have the most fun with. Sure, each class has a BEST build in terms of efficiency, damage, farming, etc. but are they fulfilling when you play them? For some people the answer might be yes, for other old heads like me that play, the answer might be been there done that. I find that I more enjoy the experience of playing a build versus how quickly I can mop the floor with enemies. For example, a riftsin is a super fun spec for Assassin but it is a bit taboo versus other assassin builds. Who doesn't love a sin that can shoot frozen orbs?!

At the end of the day, it is up to personal preference and can sometimes come down to the gear you have available to use for building something. Hope this helps! Let me know what you end up going with!