[3.14] Flame Golem 101 - Complete Guide To Golemancy, ✔️All Bosses Down, ✔️Necro, ✔️Elementalist

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Kelemn wrote:

Hi there, just giving you an update and thanks you for the insanely good guide.
Reached level 87, and finaly got my Presence of Chayula it was a lot of grinding.

This is my first summoner build and one of the strongest build i played.
I have hit a wall at level 85 and had to respect Necromantic Aegis to a +30 dext node and take a +30 str node at level 86.
Since then i switched from Victario'S Charity to Rathpith Globe and switched this ammy

to Chayula.
Also switched from Solar Guard to Vanguard, clear speed is a little slower but bosses/rares are way easiers.

I was able to tank uber lab Isaro Slam but died to a trap so i still need my last ascension which will increase clear speed.

Build feel a lot more tanky and now i'm at
Life :2613
Shield:7022
EHP :9635

Still working on getting optimal gem and other harmonies but so far it look great.
Dropped Kiara's Determination and using a resistance flask to cap cold resist until i have better belt or more jewel socket (missing 19%).

I prefer the tank version with Vertex helmet its making life easier.

Otherwise feel great to have +50% chaos resist.

Thanks a lot for all your advice and the guide.

My current gear :

Spoiler

Thanks for support ^^

You have really nice gear overall and healthy EHP :)

You might want to chance Vertex to pseudo 6-link helmet for Uber Elder fight as 6 link Tukohamas make fight lot faster.

There are little improvements like raising chaos res in gear, upgrading gems to higher level or getting enhancements for gloves or helmet, but setup looks very well build. You should have smooth sailing to as high level as you want. Builds DPS gets lot stronger per Harmony that you can equip ;)

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Hello, thanks for your guide. I've been following it and having a blast.

I have a question about the usage of spell totem that you mention a lot for boss fights. I didn't find spell totem under your 'gem' section so I'm a little bit confused as to how I should use spell totem for boss fights. As in...what do I link spell totem to in order to make it useful for bosses?

I've just been vaguely spamming storm burst in the general direction of the boss to make my golems aggro it but I'd love to know how to use spell totem correctly for more accurate boss pointing. Thanks!

Thanks for the support :)

Spell totem was actually used in older setup before 3.3 update. It works still pretty well and lets you use Phase Run more effectively as you can place totem for 6-8 seconds and then focus solely on kiting while having Phase Run up to 4 seconds at once as you don't have to break it by casting Storm Burst to activate Elemental Equilibrium.

Spell totem actually has only few weaknesses :
- Totem life = If you don't link it with minion & totem resistance t16+ bosses can 1-shot the totem. This leads to second weakness
- Totem cast speed = Without totem nodes and spell totems lower cast speed it takes some time for the totem to cast first spell. If boss hits if before first cast, it negates whole Elemental Equilibrium. This is not major weakness, but requires some focus when in placing the totem.

I'm testing spell totem in standard again with link :
- Spell Totem -> Ball Lightning to trigger EE
- CWDT(lvl 1) -> Convocation(lvl 1) -> Phase Run(lvl 1 / 20) -> Increased Duration(lvl 1 / 20)

I also took both 10% skill effect duration / minion damage nodes from right side of Ascendancy to increase Phase Runs duration as close to 4 second cooldown without and frenzy nodes as possible. However I usually have enough Frenzy nodes to increase Phase Run duration to over 8 second, so it's just backup.

Storm Burst gives more chance to run additional skills under 1-button skill, but it's bit slower to use than Totem. I really like both and recommend testing which one is better for own playstyle :)

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I was pleased with this double corrupt for the +4 to temp chains and flammability/ele weakness and +2 to blasphemy and vaal skeletons.

Hi :)

You have pretty nice corrupts in boots.

However you are seriously nerfing Temp Chains without using Ehnance as +4 level to Temp Chains gives only 2% more base slow, where each level on Enhance will give you 4% base focus.

With +1 level Bones, Enhance 4 and Skittering Runes you can hit Temp Chains -75% cap. Enhance is strongest way to boost Temp Chains so I really recommend at least testing it.

Can anybody advice what spectres can i use for more defence? Choose elementalist build and while golems are destroying all around, i want to get more defence. Atm using Heretical Guardians from 5th act, but they always running out to mobs so i'm not often buffed by their shield. Is there any other options with spectres?

I dont think that Spectres are that good for defence.
You could try to swap the gems for other ones wich boost defence.

I play as 4/1/1 Golem Elementalist anderen dont usw Spectres at all.
I dont have that many nodes they get boosted from and thus I dont think its worth.
Probaly incorrect and a pseudo 6L or even 7L in my Helmet would boost them enough.


EDIT:

I ripped my Char sadly. Got one shot from the Boss of the Summit Map.
Did not see that Meteor comming. Really sad because i tried to farm currency for the Challenges.
Dont know what to play now.
I think for HC the Life Ele build i did was okay-ish but usually u dont want to go for Evade.
Dont think that most other builds could tank that shot but anyway.
Felt kinda unsafe from time to time and higher maps.
The damage was quite good and the Clearspeed was really good.
Boss Damage was a lil slow but i did not reached the empower lvl 3 or 21 gems. :-(

I'm following this guide with the goal of doing bosses; I have another character for maps so that's not the priority. I've never done most end-game bosses before so durability and some room to make mistakes is important.

Is the necro approach the best way to go for this goal, since TV's are going to be doing the heavy lifting? I'm only level 40 now and I haven't done Lab yet, I just want to make sure I'm picking the best path for learning bosses and probably dying a lot.

Thanks!

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faraddox wrote:

Can anybody advice what spectres can i use for more defence? Choose elementalist build and while golems are destroying all around, i want to get more defence. Atm using Heretical Guardians from 5th act, but they always running out to mobs so i'm not often buffed by their shield. Is there any other options with spectres?

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I dont think that Spectres are that good for defence.
You could try to swap the gems for other ones wich boost defence.

I play as 4/1/1 Golem Elementalist anderen dont usw Spectres at all.
I dont have that many nodes they get boosted from and thus I dont think its worth.
Probaly incorrect and a pseudo 6L or even 7L in my Helmet would boost them enough.

EDIT:

I ripped my Char sadly. Got one shot from the Boss of the Summit Map.
Did not see that Meteor comming. Really sad because i tried to farm currency for the Challenges.
Dont know what to play now.
I think for HC the Life Ele build i did was okay-ish but usually u dont want to go for Evade.
Dont think that most other builds could tank that shot but anyway.
Felt kinda unsafe from time to time and higher maps.
The damage was quite good and the Clearspeed was really good.
Boss Damage was a lil slow but i did not reached the empower lvl 3 or 21 gems. :-(

Hello :)

I have no experience in using Specters defensively, but what I have understood best defensive Specs are "Undying evangelist" as they have the proximity shield and are ranged type, so they will always be near you.

You can probable increase their shields range and duration with linking them with :
Specter -> Increased area -> Efficacy Support -> Increased Duration

You can also use :
- 2x Unending Hunger jewels (Minions have (6-8)% increased Area of Effect per jewel)
- 2x Heartbound Loop rings (Minions have 10% increased Area of Effect per ring)
- Mutewind Pennant Shield With Necromantic Aegis (10% increased Area of Effect)

and try to increase their shields area as large as possible. No idea how useful this is.

Arinfaed : Sorry to hear about your HC char :/

I hope you had good time playing the build and maybe can play it sometime later again. There have been some successful HC players with 95+ level chars using some self-made variant of the build, but I can't really recommend any as I don't play HC myself and have no idea how to change build for it.

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I'm following this guide with the goal of doing bosses; I have another character for maps so that's not the priority. I've never done most end-game bosses before so durability and some room to make mistakes is important.

Is the necro approach the best way to go for this goal, since TV's are going to be doing the heavy lifting? I'm only level 40 now and I haven't done Lab yet, I just want to make sure I'm picking the best path for learning bosses and probably dying a lot.

Thanks!

Hey :)

Necromancer should have best endgame boss kill speed. You can even decide between skin of the loyal and 6-l Vis Mortis as extra Specters boosts boss damage quite a bit. 4 Flame Golems + 4 Tukohamas has been working very well for endgame bossing.

Elementalist variant is great for general mapping and Status immunities make is very easy to play.

Occultist is more tanky and can help parties with dual cursing hexproof mobs.

Necromancer can kill bosses fastest with cheapest gear. TV specs do most of endgame boss damage but suck at clearing maps. If you want to kill bosses faster raising Specs to 4-5x will significantly improve kill speed. Also using Combustion instead of Controlled Destruction will boost TVs damage by 20%

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mika2salo wrote:

Necromancer should have best endgame boss kill speed. You can even decide between skin of the loyal and 6-l Vis Mortis as extra Specters boosts boss damage quite a bit. 4 Flame Golems + 4 Tukohamas has been working very well for endgame bossing.

Elementalist variant is great for general mapping and Status immunities make is very easy to play.

Occultist is more tanky and can help parties with dual cursing hexproof mobs.

Necromancer can kill bosses fastest with cheapest gear. TV specs do most of endgame boss damage but suck at clearing maps. If you want to kill bosses faster raising Specs to 4-5x will significantly improve kill speed. Also using Combustion instead of Controlled Destruction will boost TVs damage by 20%

Thank you for the information, I really appreciate it! It looks like Necromancer is the way to go, but a 6-l Vis Mortis is going to be out of my price range for a while. Would it be better to use a 6-L Skin of the Loyal or a 5-L Vis Mortis? Thanks!

"

mika2salo wrote:

Necromancer should have best endgame boss kill speed. You can even decide between skin of the loyal and 6-l Vis Mortis as extra Specters boosts boss damage quite a bit. 4 Flame Golems + 4 Tukohamas has been working very well for endgame bossing.

Let's be honest, using your build variation, that the probably case.

Using the elementalist as a true golementalist (without spectres, without all the unnecessary nodes, with more harmonies/eminence, optimizing gems and aura for dps/movement) is undoubtedly as fast as the necro, if not faster. I've never felt as strong as currently, since I decided to leave spectre alones and put more jewels actually and so far, i've achieved some boss kill far faster than I ever did with any variation of the build I did.

Key point for dps is "golem placement", so if you don't pay attention to golems, leaving them spamming shockwave, you won't be efficient since magma balls are the major dps skill.

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JonathanPDX wrote:

Thank you for the information, I really appreciate it! It looks like Necromancer is the way to go, but a 6-l Vis Mortis is going to be out of my price range for a while. Would it be better to use a 6-L Skin of the Loyal or a 5-L Vis Mortis? Thanks!

Depends what you want to boost actually.
6L SoTL will give your golems more damage, life.
5L VM will just lower your golem dps, but increase your minion damage / lowering their life, and give you +1 spectre which is good if you are doing necro with Soul Weaver

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Anakhon wrote:

Using the elementalist as a true golementalist (without spectres, without all the unnecessary nodes, with more harmonies/eminence, optimizing gems and aura for dps/movement) is undoubtedly as fast as the necro, if not faster. I've never felt as strong as currently, since I decided to leave spectre alones and put more jewels actually and so far, i've achieved some boss kill far faster than I ever did with any variation of the build I did.

Key point for dps is "golem placement", so if you don't pay attention to golems, leaving them spamming shockwave, you won't be efficient since magma balls are the major dps skill.

How does the defense compare to the necro/spectre build? It seems like going 2x Clayshaper and all-in on jewel nodes spreads you pretty thin on HP and general defense. I'm intrigued but afraid to wind up as a glass cannon, given that I don't know the boss mechanics yet. :)

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JonathanPDX wrote:

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Anakhon wrote:

Using the elementalist as a true golementalist (without spectres, without all the unnecessary nodes, with more harmonies/eminence, optimizing gems and aura for dps/movement) is undoubtedly as fast as the necro, if not faster. I've never felt as strong as currently, since I decided to leave spectre alones and put more jewels actually and so far, i've achieved some boss kill far faster than I ever did with any variation of the build I did.

Key point for dps is "golem placement", so if you don't pay attention to golems, leaving them spamming shockwave, you won't be efficient since magma balls are the major dps skill.

How does the defense compare to the necro/spectre build? It seems like going 2x Clayshaper and all-in on jewel nodes spreads you pretty thin on HP and general defense. I'm intrigued but afraid to wind up as a glass cannon, given that I don't know the boss mechanics yet. :)

I have no real issue with defense (but I know well many boss mechanics also). Flasks also help.

If you get good gear, you can have easily 6-7k ES, using a shield (since double clayshaper is not mandatory) also increased a lot the EHP. You are still a glasscanon like the necro, (which have the advantage of getting buffs from offerings compared to the elementalist), since you don't have armor, real block (that's why I use basalt, quartz and rumi to have dodge, block and damage reduction)

If you don't know boss mechanics, you'd better use a shield, if not only for shield charge / more ehp (my own opinion). If you go for temp chain aura it will also improve a little your survivability (as enemies are slower, but... *shrugs* i'd rather use vaal haste and curses using CoH).

If you play HC, you can have good life pool and ES without lacking DPS, but then you'd rather use something like a good vaal regalia or shavronne instead of SoTL. (you can get almost 10k ES if you use a vaal regalia and other rares very well rolled with ES FYI)

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JonathanPDX wrote:

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mika2salo wrote:

Necromancer should have best endgame boss kill speed. You can even decide between skin of the loyal and 6-l Vis Mortis as extra Specters boosts boss damage quite a bit. 4 Flame Golems + 4 Tukohamas has been working very well for endgame bossing.

Elementalist variant is great for general mapping and Status immunities make is very easy to play.

Occultist is more tanky and can help parties with dual cursing hexproof mobs.

Necromancer can kill bosses fastest with cheapest gear. TV specs do most of endgame boss damage but suck at clearing maps. If you want to kill bosses faster raising Specs to 4-5x will significantly improve kill speed. Also using Combustion instead of Controlled Destruction will boost TVs damage by 20%

Thank you for the information, I really appreciate it! It looks like Necromancer is the way to go, but a 6-l Vis Mortis is going to be out of my price range for a while. Would it be better to use a 6-L Skin of the Loyal or a 5-L Vis Mortis? Thanks!

"

Depends what you want to boost actually.
6L SoTL will give your golems more damage, life.
5L VM will just lower your golem dps, but increase your minion damage / lowering their life, and give you +1 spectre which is good if you are doing necro with Soul Weaver

Hello :)

6 link Sotl should give more total DPS than 5 link Vis Mortis with high level Golems and Harmonies. For boss killing early 5 link Vis Mortis with pseudo 6-link Specs might still be good option.

"

Let's be honest, using your build variation, that the probably case.

Using the elementalist as a true golementalist (without spectres, without all the unnecessary nodes, with more harmonies/eminence, optimizing gems and aura for dps/movement) is undoubtedly as fast as the necro, if not faster. I've never felt as strong as currently, since I decided to leave spectre alones and put more jewels actually and so far, i've achieved some boss kill far faster than I ever did with any variation of the build I did.

Key point for dps is "golem placement", so if you don't pay attention to golems, leaving them spamming shockwave, you won't be efficient since magma balls are the major dps skill.

"

How does the defense compare to the necro/spectre build? It seems like going 2x Clayshaper and all-in on jewel nodes spreads you pretty thin on HP and general defense. I'm intrigued but afraid to wind up as a glass cannon, given that I don't know the boss mechanics yet. :)

"

I have no real issue with defense (but I know well many boss mechanics also). Flasks also help.

If you get good gear, you can have easily 6-7k ES, using a shield (since double clayshaper is not mandatory) also increased a lot the EHP. You are still a glasscanon like the necro, (which have the advantage of getting buffs from offerings compared to the elementalist), since you don't have armor, real block (that's why I use basalt, quartz and rumi to have dodge, block and damage reduction)

If you don't know boss mechanics, you'd better use a shield, if not only for shield charge / more ehp (my own opinion). If you go for temp chain aura it will also improve a little your survivability (as enemies are slower, but... *shrugs* i'd rather use vaal haste and curses using CoH).

If you play HC, you can have good life pool and ES without lacking DPS, but then you'd rather use something like a good vaal regalia or shavronne instead of SoTL. (you can get almost 10k ES if you use a vaal regalia and other rares very well rolled with ES FYI)

Hey :)

I just tested just Golems without Specs using Elementalist against Shaper and I really felt that the kill speed was lower than with Specs. Maybe increasing jewels to 14x would buff Golems damage enough, but you have to cut skill-points from defenses and utility.

With sacrifices pure Elementalist could go higher in DPS than Golem / Spec hybrid, but it needs great knowledge of boss mechanics and careful playing around mobs if using Coh. However it's very possible with enough skill.